
Class _fLlij=uA_ 
Book A"\ ^-^ 



CjQE^^RIGHT OliLPOSQl 




John Cooa of Baltimore 



Commercial 

ROSE CULTURE 

UNDER GLASS AND OUTDOORS 



A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO MODERN METHODS 

OF GROWING THE ROSE FOR 

MARKET PURPOSES 

SECOND EDITION 

HEAVILY ILLUSTRATED WITH THE ' 
COMMERCIAL ROSES OF TODAY 



By Eber Holmes 



NEW YORK 

A. T. De La Mare Company, Inc. 

1919 



%t> 









Second Edition 

Copyright, 1919 

All Rights Reserved 

A. T. De LA Mare Company, Inc., New York 



MOV -6 iyi9 



(0)CI.A5356;i9 



TO 

JOHN COOK 

OF BALTIMORE, MD. 
This work is respectfully dedicated 



To Mr. Cook the rosarians of America are indebted for 
the dissemination of much knowledge concerning the Rose as 
adapted to American culture, and its commercial possibilities. 
To him, also, we are indebted for many varieties resulting 
from his skill and years of patient labor and experiment in 
hybridization, among them. Souvenir de Wootten, the first 
Hybrid Tea Rose raised in America, Marion Dingee, Annie 
Cook, Mrs. Robert Garrett, Baltimore, Enchanter, Cardinal, 
Madonna, My Maryland, Radiance and Mrs. John Cook, 
one of the latest productions, some of which have become 
staples in the underglass production of Roses for the require- 
ments of the great flower markets. The liberality with which 
his knowledge, obtained at the expense of countless experi- 
ments and failures, has always been placed at the service 
of others, has endeared him to all followers of his craft, one 
which, more than any other, demands the acme of patience 
and self-sacrifice in order to accomplish lasting results. 

" The lyfe so short, the craft so long to lerne." 



ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 



For photographs from which several of our illustrations have been 
made, we are indebted to A. N. Pierson, Inc., Cromwell, Conn.; E. G. 
Hill Co., Richmond, Ind.; Chas. H. Totty, Madison, N. J.; Department 
of Agriculture, Bureau of Plant Industry, Washington, D. C; Thos. 
Rochford & Sons, Broxbourne, England; Hoopes Bro. & Thomas Co., 
West Chester, Pa.; F. R. Pierson Co., Tarrytown, N. Y.; M. H. Walsh, 
Woods Hole, Mass.; Hitchings & Co., Elizabeth, N. J.; Lord & Burn- 
ham Co., Irvington, N. Y.; Kroeschell Bros. Co., Chicago, 111. We are 
also under obligations to the Department of Agriculture, Bureau of 
Plant Industry, Washington, D. C, for permission to print the subject 
"The Seedling-Inarch and Nurse-Plant Methods of Plant Propaga- 
tion," an extract from Bulletin No. 202; to Fred Lautenschlager of 
Kroeschell Bros. Co., Chicago, 111., for notes on hot water heating; to 
Albert F. Amling of Maywood, 111., for extracts from his paper on 
"Growing Costs and Returns," read before a meeting of the Chicago 
Florists' Club. 



CONTENTS 

(For Classified Index, see pages 194 to 198) 
Chapter Page 

I. Choosing a Locaticn 12 

II. Style of Houses 17 

III. What to Plant 22 

IV. Propagation — Own Root 27 

V. Propagation by Grafting 34 

VI. Hybridizing 43 

VII. The Seedling-Inarch and Nurse-Plant Methods of Plant 

Propagation 50 

VIII. Preparation of the Soil for Planting 57 

IX. General Culture 66 

X. Cropping Roses 76 

XI. Resting Roses in Winter 82 

XII. Insect Pests 91 

XIII. Fungous Diseases 98 

XIV. Insecticides and Fungicides 103 

XV. Fertilizers 107 

XVI. The American Beauty Rose 114 

XVII. Bunch Roses 120 

XVIII. Rambler Roses 127 

XIX. Roses Outdoors 136 

XX. Cost of Equipment and Returns 146 

XXI. Notes on Cutting, Marketing, Exhibiting, etc 149 

XXII. General Remarks 155 

XXIII. Greenhouse Construction for Rose Growing 165 

XX IV. Steam Heating and Engineering 173 

XXV. Hot Water Heating '. 185 

XXV I. Growing Costs and Returns 189 

ILLUSTRATIONS 

Rose Premier 13 

Hoosier Beauty 14 

Frances Scott Key 19 

Mrs. Chas. Russell 20 

Frank W. Dunlop 23 

Ophelia 24 

Grading Stick 26 

A Three-Eye Cutting 28 

A One-Eye Cutting 30 

A Three-Eye Cutting trimmed ready for the sand bed 31 

A Cion Just Cut Off the Plant 36 

Manetti Stock Ready to be Cut Down 37 

Manetti Stock Cut Down Ready to Receive Cion 39 

The Finished Grafted Plant ready for the Case 42 

Rose Columbia 45 

Ophelia Supreme 46 



8 ILLUSTRATIONS 

Page 

Rose Seedlings Four Weeks after Germination 51 

Rose Seedlings Prepared for Inarching 52 

Rose Seedlings Inarched to Stocks of the Manetti Rose 54 

Inarched Rose Seedling Showing Growth Made in Two Months 

After Inarching 56 

Rose Mrs. George Shawyer 59 

Mme. Paul Euler, or Prima Donna 60 

Pilgrim 63 

Section of House of Rose Pilgrim 64 

Rose Mme. Butterfly 71 

Lady Alice Stanley 72 

Rosalind 77 

Mrs. Henry Winnett 78 

Double White Killarney 83 

Sunburst 84 

Rose Buds in Various Stages of Development 87 

Rose Silvia 93 

Frau Karl Druschki 94 

Mrs. John Cook 101 

Dorothy Perkins 106 

Ulrich Brunner 109 

American Beauty 115, 116 

Double Rugosa 119 

Cecil Brunner 122 

Climbing Lucile 126 

Climbing Hiawatha 128 

Methods of Training Rambler Roses 131 

Rose Baby Rambler in Pot 132 

Basket Trained Rose Plant . .' 133 

Specimen Wichuriana Hybrid 135 

Arbor and Terrace in Rose Garden at Elizabeth Park, Hartford, 

Conn 137 

Rose White Maman Cochet 138 

Bed of Rose Ophelia. 141 

Rose Climbing American Beauty 142 

Commercial Rose Packing 151 

Rose My Maryland 160 

Hadley 161 

Interior View of One of the Duckham-Pierson Co. Rose Houses. . . .166 

Greenhouse Range of L. B. Coddington 168 

Interior of House of L. B. Coddington 169 

Two Houses of Jos. H. Hill Co 170 

Rosa Stylosa 171 

View showing White House Conservatories 172 

Rose Martinet 178 

Mrs Aaron Ward ' 182 

Tausendschoen 1 87 

Jonkheer J. L. Mock ._ . 188 

A reference index to all subjects mentioned is given, commencing 
on page 194 



INTRODUCTION TO FIRST EDITION 

THIS work was first published in response to numerous 
requests for an uptodate treatise on commercial Rose 
culture. It did not delve into the ancient history of the Rose 
or indulge in long descriptions and classifications of varieties. 
These points had been well covered by previous writers. 
Herein the author has endeavored to make known the best 
way to be successful in growing good Roses under glass and 
outdoors. There is hard work in quantity and much expense 
in modern Rose growing, but the pleasure and profit derived 
from the same afford ample compensation. 

The magnitude of the business as compared with its status 
of thirty-five years ago, is surprising. Parsons, in his book on 
the Rose, published in 1881, on page 71, speaking of the ex- 
travagance of Nero in spending $100,000 for Roses for one 
feast, says: "It would be no easy matter, even at the present 
period of abundant cultivation of Roses, to obtain from all 
the nurseries of England, France and America together, Roses 
sufficient to amount to so large a sum." Compare these words 
with present day facts, when there are probably as many 
Roses handled in any one of our largest cities, on some holi- 
days, as were ever seen by Nero at any of his feasts! 

The question has been asked the author, "Why is Rose 
growing in the hands of a comparatively few men, while 
Carnations are tried and grown (often successfully) by every 
beginner in the florist's business ?" The reply generally 
given to this question is that Roses require more care, are 
more liable to diseases and pests likely to cause failure, that a 
night man must be kept by the Rose grower, and that the 
general expense is such as to bar out the man of limited means. 
While this may be partly true, it is often exaggerated, as 



10 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

there are today many small Rose growers who are eminently 
successful, and who make more money, in comparison with 
capital invested, than some of the larger ones. 

The multitude of diseases and pests may be narrowed 
down to about half a dozen serious ones, and these, in turn, 
if understood and taken in time, may be so controlled that 
little harm will result from them. Neglect of proper care is 
responsible for the majority of failures. 

Where Roses are understood and properly treated their 
culture is as simple as that of other florist's flowers. It is an 
advantage to any man to take a course in one of our agri- 
cultural colleges, or to work a few years in one of our modern 
and fully equipped commercial establishments. Good read- 
ing is also to be recommended, but the beginner will find he 
will learn more after a few years' personal experience, with the 
responsibility on his own shoulders, than he would in a much 
longer period where he is watching someone else do the work. 
There is something new and interesting to learn about Rose 
growing every day. The care required is constant, and the 
old saw, "Eternal vigilance is the price of success," is perhaps 
more true of Rose culture than of any other branch of the 
grower's art. 

EBER HOLMES. 
Montrose, Mass., October, 191 1. 



INTRODUCTION TO SECOND EDITION 

The many kind words spoken of the first edition have been 
a source of much pleasure to the author and publisher, and 
it has been gratifying to know that many young men have 
been helped by its perusal. I shall not soon forget the com- 
plimentary words spoken in favor of the book by that 
eminent authority, the late Mr. Lawrence Cotter of James- 
town, N. Y., on one occasion in New York City. 

Considerable additions have been made to the reading 
matter and to the illustrations in the present edition bringing 
the work fully uptodate. There is really little new in the 
art of Rose growing. The fundamental principles do not 
change. It is the ability of a man to adapt himself to chang- 
ing conditions of the times and of his environment, that counts 
most today, improved types of houses, of heating, labor sav- 
ing devices in these days of scarcity of labor at higher prices, 
the careful elimination of all waste or unnecessary expense, 
the knowledge of what may be left undone, as well as what 
must be done to ensure success. All these things count today 
as never before and one must study them closely in order to 
be a successful grower. 

In some modern establishments of importance, refrigerat- 
ing plants have taken the place of the old ice boxes, resulting 
in a considerable reduction in cost at the greenhouses and 
also giving greater returns by getting the stock to market 
in a much better condition. Everything that tends to 
increased production of better stock in a given area should 
be carefully studied by the grower. If results are not satis- 
factory do not jump at the conclusion that some one thing is 
the cause of the trouble (which may or may not be true), 
but study the case from every point of view, for quite often 
a combination of circumstances may be the reason for failure 

as it surely is of success. 

^ EBER HOLMES. 

Agawam, Mass., August, 1919. 

11 



CHAPTER I 

CHOOSING A LOCATION 

THE first essential when locating a Rose growing estab- 
lishment is good soil and plenty of it. Land that will 
grow good corn, or any ordinary garden crop, may be made 
to grow good Roses. Buy as much land as you can afford at 
the start, for this generally proves a good investment in any 
case. Small lots of land will do for the town florist who grows 
for a retail trade and buys a large part of his goods, but for 
the wholesale grower twenty-five acres is about as small an 
amount of land as it is wise to commence with. There are 
successful men with less, but most of them would like to ob- 
tain more land, as they feel the pressing need of obtaining an 
unlimited amount of good, fresh soil for their houses. The 
most ill advised action any man can take is to buy land with a 
lotof drawbacks in the belief that he can overcome all the ob- 
jections, later, by hard work. A little foresight in locating is 
better than a great deal of hindsight later on. 

An average level field, large enough to build houses east and 
west, at least 300 feet long, is desirable. If grading on an ex- 
tensive scale has to be done it will add considerably to the 
first cost of building, at a time, too, when it is necessary to 
avoid every possible extra expense. It will be found that the 
cost of grading will, in ordinary cases, be about one dollar for 
every hundred cubic feet of material used if the haul is 
less than half a mile and the filling easily obtained. In some 
cases all that is necessary is to remove the sod and loam and 
erect the houses without any filling. The ground should be 
high enough and have natural drainage so that it will not lie 

12 



CHOOSING A LOCATION 



13 




Rose Premier 

A cross between Ophelia and Mrs. Chas. Russell; the blooms are 

clear pure rose pink in color 



14 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Hoosier Beauty 
Rich velvety crimson in color with deeper shadings 
Photo courtesy E. G. Hill Co., Richmond, Ind. 



CHOOSING A LOCATION 15 

under water at any time of the year. A southeast to south- 
west exposure is the best. 

If a natural shelter exists on the north and northwest, it 
is well; if none is there, it is advisable to plant trees, which in 
a few years' time, will make a windbreak. The water supply 
is important and should be one of the first considerations. If 
a stream runs through the property, from which water may be 
pumped, it will save the expense of driving a well and will 
possibly give water on which Roses will thrive better than on 
well water. I do not mean to condemn well water, for it is 
generally used with good results, but I believe that water from 
streams is often better for plant life if only from the fact that 
the wash it contains from the land through which it flows 
is of some value as a fertilizer. It is generally very soft and 
the next best article to rain water which old gardeners used to 
catch and carefully preserve for use when watering their 
plants. Where there is city or town water to be had at 
reasonable rates this source of supply is generally adopted. 
The cost will vary, but might approximate $150.00 per year 
for every 30,000 square feet of glass. Some people pump 
their own water from streams or wells but, when everything is 
figured in from first cost of installing a pumping outfit to 
labor and fuel in running it, it has generally proved most 
satisfactory to have the city supply. It is an advantage to 
have both, in case of a breakdown to either system, for to 
be without water in any greenhouse establishment is a 
serious proposition. 

In choosing a location avoid branch railroads and, if at all 
possible, get near to a station on the main line. The wisdom 
of this step, when receiving coal and all other freight, as well 
as when making the daily shipments of flowers or plants, will 
soon be apparent. Good shipping facilities are indispensable 
to any establishment, and proximity to express offices is 
advantageous. 



16 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Cow manure is an item to be considered and, if there are 
dairy farms in the vicinity where this can be obtained, it will 
be in favor of the location. 

Due consideration should be given to all these and other 
questions which will need to be solved when looking over 
farms with a view to starting a Rose growing establishment. 
Having secured the land, the next thing to decide on is 
the style and size of the house or houses. 




CHAPTER II 

STYLE OF HOUSES 

TN building a house for Rose growing, the most sheltered and 
■*■ sunny part of the field should be chosen where there is 
room to run east and west. A good size for a beginner would 
be a house 300 feet long and 40 feet wide, although the 
length and width may be greatly increased if desired. Houses 
up to 32 feet in width may be built even span; for houses 
much wider, three-quarter span is better. Iron, or semi- 
iron construction, is much in favor at the present time, 
although good wooden houses are built for a little less money 
and, if taken care of, will last a lifetime. 

There are a number of reliable firms of builders of green- 
houses of every description, and it would be well to get esti- 
mates and specifications from several of these and to compare 
same carefully before giving out any contracts. If the order 
is given in due season, these firms will erect a house in short 
order and have it ready when they agree to, which is worth 
a great deal when it is considered that every day's delay in 
planting, after the first of July, means an actual money loss. 
After the middle of July this loss has been placed at twenty- 
five dollars per day for every day's delay in planting 10,000 
square feet of bench surface. 

The material may be bought and erected by local labor, 
from plans furnished, or the builders will erect the house. The 
latter way would probably be the cheapest in the end for a 
man with little experience in this work. One point worth 
remembering is, that the average carpenter who has never 

17 



18 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

erected an iron frame greenhouse has a very poor idea of how 
to commence and carry on the work. 

The walls of the house may be of wood, or of concrete up 
to the glazing sill, which should be so placed as to allow from 
two to four feet of glass on the sides of the house. A great 
many builders use a spliced sash bar on long roofs; there is 
often more or less drip in a house where this is used, which is 
objectionable. It is possible to obtain sash bars in one piece, 
up to thirty-five feet in length, from some firms. 

Sixteen by twenty-four-inch glass is the size commonly 
used and this Is generally laid with the long part of the glass 
up and down the roof. By laying the glass the twenty-four- 
inch way you save one sash bar in four, but the bars must 
be made heavier and there is more danger of breakage from 
snow and ice, so that it is advisable to space the bars about 
sixteen inches apart to admit of the glass being laid in 
this way. 

It is best to have continuous ventilation on both sides of 
the roof. The ventilators on the north side will not be of 
use in the Winter months, but all through the warm weather 
it is advisable to ventilate on both sides and to allow the air 
to circulate through the top of the house instead of beating 
down on to the bushes, as it must do where there is only an 
opening on one side and the wind is blowing in on that side. 

The house ought to have a good coat of paint before erec- 
tion and another one afterward. 

If a natural slope exists on the ground where the boilers 
may be placed below the level of the houses, without digging 
a cellar, it is of great help and will save money as well as give 
good results. There is nothing which is better than a good 
gravity system where this is possible. If this is not feasible, 
on account of the cost of excavating, the boilers may be set 
on top of the ground and the condensation returned by a 
trap or a pump. 



STYLE OF HOUSES 



19 





lU 


- / ^ 


/■YH>;fc ^* 


^r- %-^' 


^^^^ 


r\^^ 


■^^,A ^^ ^ 





Rose Francis Scott Key 
One of the finest of red Roses; flowers extra large and full 



20 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Mrs. Chas. Russell 
Pink American Beauty; enormous in size 



STYLE OF HOUSES 



21 



Provision should be made for a manure tank, a room for 
grading and storing the cut flowers, a potting shed and a place 
for propagating young stock. There should be room, under 
cover, to store enough loam in the Fall to take care of the 
potting until March or April. Where any quantity of soil is 
required early in the Spring, for planting, it may be stacked 
up in a semi-dry condition in the Fall, in a compact pile; it 
will not freeze through to any great depth and may be handled 
at almost any time. 




CHAPTER III 

WHAT TO PLANT 

TO the beginner the question of what to plant may be a 
perplexing one. As this is such a large country, it is 
only natural that some varieties are more popular in certain 
sections than others, or that some varieties are more success- 
fully grown in one locality than in another. A good rule 
would be to find out what your market calls for and what 
kinds are successfully grown in your vicinity, and to com- 
mence with these kinds. It is too risky for a beginner to 
launch out on unknown seas. He must follow the beaten 
track at first, and then, by degrees, he can experiment 
with new varieties, and should he strike a good thing he 
will make money. 

The Killarneys, pink and white, are still grown and are 
popular. Hadley, Hoosier Beauty and Francis Scott Key 
are good reds, Columbia and Mrs. Charles Russell are popular 
pink varieties, while Ophelia is of a somewhat varying color 
and is grown extensively. Then we have almost a score of 
others which are largely grown, but not so universally found 
on the market as the kinds first mentioned. 

It is not advisable for an inexperienced man to try to grow 
American Beauty Roses. This crop does not always pay well, 
even with expert growers, and the tyro would be very likely to 
lose money if he attempted it. 

There has been much money wasted in experimenting in a 
large number of greenhouses and, if you can profit by your 
neighbor's mistakes, you will get your experience very 
cheaply. Having decided what you will grow you can figure 

22 



WHAT TO PLANT 



23 




Rose Frank W. Dunlop 

Originated by John H. Dunlop of Toronto 

A seedling of Mrs. Geo. Shawyer and Mrs. Chas. Russell, having the 

free growing characteristics of the former and the taking 

coloring and lasting qualities of the latter 



24 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Ophelia 
Salmon-flesh shaded with rose; fine foliage; wonderfully fragrant 



, WHAT TO PLANT 25 

that you will require about 8000 plants for every 10,000 
square feet of bench surface. You will do well to order these 
ahead from some reliable firm or firms and to specify just when 
you want them delivered. Then your part will be to hustle 
everything along and get your houses roofed in on time; your 
loam on the benches, the water pipes laid, faucets all in 
position, and everything in readiness for planting. It would 
be better, too, if the boilers were set, piping done and every- 
thing in readiness to turn on steam at a few hours' notice, 
but this is not so important as it is to avoid delay in planting. 

If the roof is tight, and the sides and ends closed in, you 
can plant at almost any time after the middle of May, but do 
not plant until the roof is covered. You can hurry along the 
steam fitting while the plants are growing; you may not need 
it for some little time, but it is better to be prepared. 

When ordering plants you may be in doubt as to whether 
to order grafted or own root stock. In this you can be guided 
to some extent by what others are doing in your locality. 

The own root stock may be bought somewhat cheaper 
than the grafted, but you will probably cut two crops of 
flowers in the Fall off the grafted plants before you get any 
from the own root stock, so that the higher priced are likely 
to prove the cheapest in the end. 

If you find it impossible to be ready for planting at the 
specified time you can generally make arrangements to have 
your plants held a little while. As soon as you receive them 
they should be unpacked and planted carefully. Your 
care of them begins the minute they are landed on your 
property, and they must not be neglected in the rush of 
building and other work on a new place, or the returns 
next Winter will not be what they ought. 



26 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 



-2V 



_2I" 



-18' 



GRADING STICK 

This illustration represents the meas- 
ure designed by Wm. H. Elliott of 
Brighton, Mass., for use in grading 
Roses, and is very useful, especially for 
beginners; it also insures a standard 
length in all grades. The measure is 
of wood tapering to 1 in. wide at the 
top; the bottom has a brass plate screwed 
on 3J^ in. wide by 1)^ in. deep. Any 
Rose which measures below the cross 
(X) marks goes into the lower grade. 

These grading sticks can be quickly 
made by any handy man around the 
greenhouse. 




.15" 



-I2* 



- 9* 



-6" 



CHAPTER IV 

PROPAGATION— OWN ROOT 

AS we get down to Rose growing proper it may be best to 
begin with the plants in their primary stages. If you 
want to produce own root stock, the methods employed are 
easy and simple. You should have a propagating house; this 
need not be large and may be situated on the north side of 
your larger house. It should have continuous ventilation 
along the top and is much improved if you can admit light 
and sun through the north wall of your Rose house by means 
of windows. If these windows slide, you will be able to admit 
air on days when it is not advisable to open the ventilators on 
your north side lean-to. These same openings will, at certain 
seasons, be of use in admitting warmth to the propagating 
house. 

The bench to hold the cuttings should be built so as to 
allow drainage of the sand, no matter whether that structure 
be of wood, tile or cement. A four- or five-inch edge board 
will hold enough depth of sand. Two or three steam pipes, 
boxed in underneath, will provide enough bottom heat. 
These should have valves so that they may be shut off alto- 
gether, or in part, as required. The best and cleanest sand 
you can get is none too good for propagation purposes; the 
kind masons use for setting bricks is just right. A good 
whitewashing with a hot lime whitewash, in which a little 
sulphur has been boiled, is of great benefit as a preservative 
and sweetener of the bench. 

Fill the benches with sand, pound down well with a brick 
or a wooden mallet, water thoroughly and insert a thermom- 
eter in the sand. The cuttings may be inserted as soon as the 

27 



28 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




/=^ 



^ Fig. 1 



A three-eye cutting 



PROPAGATION— OWN ROOT 29 

sand is warmed up to 60° F. or over. The best atmospheric 
temperature for a propagating house is one about the same 
as the plants were growing in. The bottom heat may be 
five degrees warmer. 

Do not take cuttings from any but healthy, vigorous 
plants. Early in the morning, or on a cloudy day, when the 
wood is fresh and comparatively cool, is the best time to take 
off wood for cuttings. Blind wood, or wood without a flower 
bud, is generally used for this purpose. It should be plump 
and clean, not so soft that the point can be pinched out with 
the thumb, and not so old as to be very hard and dry. Wood 
of about the same texture as that next to the flower when it 
is cut, is in the right stage of development. If you can afford 
to throw away some flowers, or if you can use them short 
stemmed, you can utilize your wood for propagating. This 
however, is a slow process and only done on a small scale, 
often with new or scarce varieties. This wood does not root 
readily if too hard, or if the stem is large and pithy. 

I believe in cuttings with two or more eyes (see Fig. i). 
They may be rooted with only one eye (see Fig. 2), if the 
object is quantity rather than quality, but cuttings with two 
or more eyes will make much larger plants in a short time 
than those with only one. 

Cut off as much wood as you can handle in a few hours' 
time, sprinkle with water to keep it fresh, and then proceed, 
with a sharp knife, to trim the cuttings as shown in Fig. 3. 
As soon as they are ready, use a narrow board or a lath, for 
a straight edge, and draw an old table knife or a putty knife 
alongside it, making a cut in the sand about half an inch deep, 
insert the cuttings just deep enough so that they will not fall 
over and place them as close together as possible without 
crowding them; then, by moving the lath to the other side 
of the row, and pounding gently on it a little, the sand will be 
tamped down enough to make the cuttings solid, and the 



30 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 



knife drawn alongside again to mark the place for the 
next row. 

This is a quick way of putting in cuttings when the work 
is properly done; they must be set in so firmly that the water- 
ings will not knock them over. Use a sprinkler on the end of 
the hose and, with a gentle spray, give a good watering 




A one-eye~cutting^not recommended 



enough to settle the sand firmly around each cutting. If the, 
drainage is all right, water every day for ten days, and after- 
ward as needed. Do not let the sun or wind in on the 
cuttings to wilt them, but be sure to keep them fresh, as cut- 
tings once wilted are never so good. The same is true of 



PROPAGATION— OWN ROOT 



31 




A three-eye cutting trimmed ready for the sand bed 



32 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

young plants in any stage; any check they get is liable to 
react against them later. 

In about three weeks' time the cuttings may be examined 
by inserting a knife and prying them up gently out of the 
sand. As soon as they have made roots about half an inch 
long they should be potted. If this operation is long delayed, 
the plants will suffer as there is no nutriment in the sand to 
sustain any growth that they may make. The roots also lose 
their plumpness, become long and brittle, are easily broken off 
when dug up from the sand and while being potted, and are 
much injured thereby. 

The soil for the first potting should contain no fresh ma- 
nure, nor any chemical fertilizer. Good Rose soil, mixed up 
the previous Summer with a little cow manure, will be in the 
right condition by this time, by which I mean anywhere 
between December first and April first. If this is stored out- 
doors, or in a cold shed, it should be brought inside long 
enough beforehand to get well warmed through before it is 
required for use. Screen and rub all lumps of sod and manure 
through a three-eighths inch screen; a one-fourth inch or one- 
half inch one will do if you have not the first named size. 
This is done to make the plant food it contains available, to 
avoid breaking the roots by trying to crowd them into a small 
pot with lumps of earth, and also to greatly increase the speed 
in potting, for it is well known by growers of small stock that 
a man can pot into small pots much faster when using 
screened loam than he can with rough material. 

A 2-inch or 2i<^-inch standard pot is large enough for the 
first potting. Pot firmly, not too deeply — and to about 
the same depth as the cuttings were in the sand. Do not set 
the roots to the bottom of the pots, nor so near the top that 
they will not stand firmly upright, and pot them all alike. If 
you knock the plants out of the pots, after a good man has 
been at work, you will find every plant just about the same as 



PROPAGATION— OWN ROOT 33 

regards depth, firmness of potting, etc. Water carefully by 
sprinkling them gently several times and then examine several 
pots to see if they are uniformly moist. Do not water them 
enough to make them muddy. 

It will save much work and care if you can place your 
young stock near the propagating house; if your potting bench 
can be located in the propagating house it will save much 
carting around. In any event, place the stock on the best and 
sunniest bench you have got, setting them level on fresh 
screened coal ashes. Shade the stock for a few hours daily, 
for the first few days, if sunny, reducing and discontinuing 
this as soon as possible. Water carefully every day or two, 
as needed, syringe well every fine day, once or twice, ac- 
cording to conditions, to keep down insects and to induce 
the lower eyes to break. Never allow the plants to become 
dry and do not get them too wet as then there is danger of 
souring the soil. A happy medium, such as will soon make 
itself apparent to you, will be the right condition to keep your 
young stock in. Have the foliage dried off before nightfall. 

Give the best of care and repot into larger pots as soon 
as the small pots are full of roots. Pot into the same kind of 
soil that you used at first, with the addition of a sprinkling 
of bonemeal. A pot one inch larger will be large enough, and 
then, if necessary, you can give them still another shift later. 
Although this is seldom done, it is much better than making 
too large a shift at once or than allowing the plants to remain 
in one pot to spoil. 



CHAPTER V 

PROPAGATION BY GRAFTING 

'* I ^HE first step toward grafting will be to order the 
-*■ Manetti (which is the best stock for this purpose) in 
good season. It is advisable to order in the Spring for 
Fall delivery. This stock may be imported from the 
British Isles or from the Continent. French grown Manetti 
may be bought for less money than the British, but the 
percentage of loss is greater, as a rule, and the stock is 
not so carefully graded, so that the difference in first cost 
is offset by results later. No one need be afraid of French 
grown stock. It is simply a case of where the lowest 
priced article is not always the cheapest. 

The Manetti generally reaches this country about the first 
of December. As soon as received it should be unpacked. 
If frozen when received it should be allowed to thaw out 
gradually, in a cold place, and then should be potted into 
good soil in small pots; 23^-inch or 23/^-inch pots are large 
enough for this purpose. If larger ones are used they take up 
too much room in the case, and the soil is more likely to sour. 
Soil such as was recommended for potting cuttings out of the 
sand is good for potting Manetti. Some growers add a sprink- 
ling of bonemeal to this, when potting, which promotes a more 
vigorous growth. of the grafted plant. An experienced com- 
mercial grower tells us that he always top-dresses his young 
grafted plants with bonemeal which promotes a quick, 
vigorous growth. 

If the roots of the Manetti are too large to insert in the 
pots they may be trimmed with a sharp knife. Shorten back, 

or cut off altogether, some of the large roots, making a clean 
34 



PROPAGATION BY GRAFTING 35 

cut, leaving on as many of the small fibrous roots as possible. 
Pot firmly, leaving the top of the soil nearly one-half an inch 
below the top of the pot. This allows low grafting, which 
means that the plants may be planted into a shallow bench 
and yet have the graft covered with soil, which is considered 
by some good growers as essential to success. However, I 
have seen grafted stock doing well when planted with the 
graft exposed above ground. When potted, place the plants 
on a bench of clean ashes in a cold house, water well once and 
then, after the first day, spray very lightly, several times 
daily, to keep the tops moist, but do not keep the roots too 
wet. Keep the house as near 46° as possible. 

The stock will be ready for grafting in from three to five 
weeks after potting, according to conditions. As soon as the 
buds swell and the roots show, they are ready to graft. While 
the stock is rooting is the time to get the grafting case ready, 
if this has not been done previously. This may be built on 
one end of the bench where you root your cuttings, but will 
require more pipes underneath, as the bottom heat must be 
greater. A temperature of 80° to 85° is required for this. 

For a bench three or four feet wide, from four to six 1 3^- 
inch steam pipes will be enough to maintain this heat if the 
sides and ends are boxed in tightly. Every pipe should have 
a valve on both ends so that the heat may be under control at 
all times. Use matched boards for building the frame, and 
make the glass cover thoroughly tight, for on this much of the 
future success depends. Build the case large enough to 
accommodate as many plants as you wish to graft and divide 
it into sections, each independent of the other, and each one 
tight. Make each section no larger than you can fill in one 
day's grafting. The case may be the same width as any 
ordinary bench, but not so wide as to be awkward to work in. 
It may be twelve inches high outside and eighteen inches high 
at the ridge. The shape of it does not matter so long as the 



36 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




A rion just cut off ths plant 



essentials are adhered to. The sash and top boards should 
be painted and the lower parts should receive a good coating 
of lime wash. About four inches of sifted ashes should be 
spread on the bottom. These should be packed down and 
well watered, and the case closed tight the day before being 
used, which induces the warm, moist condition necessary for 
best results. 

If you have 10,000 to graft, a case holding about 3500 will 
be large enough, for if you commence early you can make 
three rounds. Each round will take about four weeks in 
all, although it has been done in less time. If you adopt this 
method, instead of trying to graft all your stock at once, it 
would be wise to pot two-thirds of your stock at first, and the 
remainder about a month later. Stock for later grafting may 
be left in the cases in a cold shed away from frost. 

The stock to be worked will be in better shape for handling 
if it is well watered the day before being used. It will then 



PROPAGATION BY GRAFTING 



37 




Manetti stock ready to be cut down where marked 
and grafted 



38 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

require no more water at the root for nearly a week, which 
makes the danger of getting water in the cut much less. 

When the days get short in the Fall we light up at about 
4.30 p. m., and the boys busy themselves by cutting raffia 
into lengths of about twelve inches and splitting it up into the 
required thickness. If this is too thin, it does not work so 
well, and if too thick it makes a bungling job. When cutting 
the flowers it is best to leave one or two good eyes with plump 
buds on the plants, just before grafting time. You can go 
around with a basket and collect these, when wanted. If you 
cannot get enough in this way it is best to sacrifice a few flow- 
ers; a rose worth eight cents, at wholesale, will cut up into 
four to six cions worth one and one-half cents each. This 
wood should never be allowed to wilt. Sprinkle it the same 
as cuttings, but do not soak it in water for any long time. 

It is a good practice to plant enough plants of the varieties 
needed for propagation by themselves and keep the flowers 
pinched off these. Much time will then be saved in taking 
cuttings when needed. 

The stock should be picked out and placed in flats and be 
in a convenient position, always selecting the ones with good 
roots and plump eyes first. We use two knives, a common 
shoe knife, or a cheap knife bought from the nurseryman's 
supply house, for the stock, and a grafting or budding knife, 
such as florists use, for cutting the cions. Use nothing but 
the best, healthy wood, with plump eyes, for this work. 
Some growers use a rack for holding the pot, which leaves 
both hands free; others take up the pot in one hand and work 
with the other. There is no diflference in the time it takes; it 
depends altogether on the operator. Make a slanting cut, as 
low down as possible on the stock, commencing as close to the 
soil as you can and working upward. Cut the cion to match 
and fit them together. If stock and cion are both of the 
same size, and well matched on both sides, it is a perfect piece 



PROPAGATION BY GRAFTING 



39 



of work. The inner bark of both must come together on one 
side at least, and it is better to make a perfect union on one 
side regardless of the other than to try to match both sides, 
and fail because stock and cion are of unequal size or the 
work improperly done. When matched, tie them together 
by wrapping raffia around, and tying with a loop knot, or 
passing the end underneath the last lap and draw tight. 
This operation ought to be done quickly but carefully. The 




Manetti stock cut down ready to receive cion 



beginner will have to go slowly at first, but with practice he 
will soon become expert. 

In our illustrations Fig. 4 shows a cion just cut off the 
plant. Fig. 5 shows the Manetti stock ready for grafting; 
Fig. 6 is the Manetti stock cut down ready to receive cion; 
Fig. 7 shows the finished grafted plant ready for the case. 

As soon as a flat is full, the plants should be set into the 
case and closed tight, being kept shaded all the time if the sun 
is shining on the house. The stock, when cut with the knife, 
should look fresh and sappy. If it looks dry and hard it 
should be rejected. Close up air-tight as soon as the case is 
full, always keeping the cions from getting dry in the mean- 



40 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

time. Keep a thermometer in every compartment and let it 
stand as near 80° as possible, a few degrees higher is better 
than a degree or two lower. If the cover of the case does not 
lit tightly, lay strips of paper in and shut down on to this. If 
the tops look at all dry, they may be sprayed with a florists' 
atomizer before being closed. 

The case need not be opened again for five days. Then 
open it early in the morning before there is ventilation on from 
outside and before. the sun is up to wilt the cuttings. Open 
wide for five to ten minutes and then close again. After two 
or three days of this treatment, a very little air may be left 
on altogether, increasing this each day until, in about three 
weeks from the time you commenced to open first, you can 
leave the cover off^ altogether. The bottom heat may be 
reduced at this time also. Very little water will be required 
the first week in the cases, but afterward, as air is admitted 
and the plants grow, they will require considerable, as the 
bottom heat will evaporate much moisture. 

During the first few days, when they are to be closed in 
tightly, you can tell by looking through the glass whether they 
are all right or not as regards moisture. It is possible that the 
foliage will look dry. If this should happen take off the cover, 
spray with a fine sprayer, with warm water, and close again 
immediately. If there is too much moisture in the case mold 
will appear, in which event a very little air might be carefully 
admitted to help dispel this. But this tinkering ought not to 
be necessary if everything has been properly done. 

If your cases are built in sections, as soon as one end is 
empty and cleaned out, it is ready for the next round. Watch 
the plants carefully the first few days after taking them out 
of the cases. Shade them a little, if needed, but never when 
you can get along without it. Give the plants the warmest 
and most sunny bench you have, and they will grow rapidly. 
After a few weeks they will need to be staked and tied to 



PROPAGATION BY GRAFTING 41 

prevent being broken when syringed with the hose. If the 
raffia is tight at this time, it may be cut away before it 
damages the bark. Take good care of these plants and you 
will have good stock at planting time. 

Propagation by Seedling and bv Budding 

Propagation of Roses by seedlings is a slow and expensive 
process, and is not to be recommended to the beginner. 
Several thousand seedlings might be raised without getting 
one worth growing. The men in this country and abroad 
who are engaged in this work have, in many cases, spent 
years of time and labor, to say nothing of money, and are 
deserving of great praise for the results so far attained. But 
this is not a work for the Rose grower who must make a living, 
and who is struggling to get established in business. 

Propagation by budding is simple. It is practiced but 
little inside, but outdoors it may be sometimes necessary or 
advisable to use this method of propagation. Manetti makes 
the best stock to bud on. This stock may be planted out 
early in the Spring, in rows eight inches apart and three feet 
between the rows. Bud in July or August as low as possible. 

There are two things necessary in budding: First, a well 
established, healthy stock plant; second, a well matured bud. 
The wood is in the right condition when the bark will peel 
easily from it. This may be tested by running the knife under 
the bark. Use a thin and sharp budding knife, make a longi- 
tudinal incision about three-quarters of an inch long, another 
short one across the top, making it T-shaped; run the knife 
under the bark to loosen it from the wood, and cut off the bud 
you wish to insert, taking with it a thin scale of the wood if the 
shoot is young. If the wood is old the bark will be sufficient. 
Cut the bark about one-quarter of an inch above and be- 
low the bud. Raise the bark on the stock with the budding 



42 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 



knife, insert the bud carefully as far as it can go, and bind with 
raffia. This may be cut away in about two weeks. Rather 
cool, cloudy weather is best for this operation. In hot, dry 
weather, the buds are liable to perish before the union is 
eflfected. Break off any shoots which attempt to push out 
below the bud and, as soon as the bud commences to grow, 
cut off the old stem above the bud as close as convenient, 
making a clean slanting cut on the opposite side of the shoot. 




The finished grafted plant ready for the case 



CHAPTER VI 

HYBRIDIZING 

A CHAPTER on this subject having been asked for, the 
following has been written: 

Hybridizing is the art of bringing together individual 
flowers or plants of different species. Cross breeding effects 
similar results with individuals of the same species. 

The average Rose grower has little time or inclination to 
practice this art and, when we consider that a man might raise 
thousands of seedlings, which take up valuable time and space 
for months and sometimes years, only to find them all worth- 
less at the end of it all, we understand why so few attempt it 
and feel genuine admiration for our pioneers in America 
who have done such noble work in this direction. 

Generally speaking, a man to be successful in this work 
must follow out a well defined and systematic course when 
crossing Roses; he must know just what he is striving for and 
select his parents with that end in view and, most probably, 
will have to keep this up for years, perhaps discarding 20,000 
seedlings before he gets one worth growing. And yet there 
is another side to this. 

It is a fact that occasionally, a beginner will make a cross 

which turns out well and this element of chance is so alluring 

that it is well worth the attempt. It has been asserted by 

eminent Rosarians that there is no limit to the diversity or 

variation of Roses produced from seed. Some have sown 

thousands of seeds of certain varieties without obtaining one 

of the same kind. It is commonly thought that the double 

varieties do not perfect their seed as well as the more single 

ones, but this has been proved incorrect, and it seems to be of 

43 



44 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

more importance as to what the shape of the flower is Hke 
rather than as to how many petals it has. 

Certain varieties seem to be incapable of forming perfect 
seed, especially such as have the petals rolled upward. Other 
kinds, having perfect pistils, will, if the flowers are allowed 
to remain, form seed pods which dry up before arriving at 
maturity. Such as these will often perfect their seed if artifi- 
cial impregnation is practiced. 

If a large number of chance seedlings is the object, select 
a piece of good ground, well prepared, and plant on it a collec- 
' tion of the best varieties obtainable. Do not prune these too 
closely but, when the flowers are about to develop, all the poor 
ones may be removed, leaving the good, well developed ones 
to flower and seed at will. 

A better way would be to carefully select flowers for cross- 
ing and hand-fertilize them, keeping a record of operations. 
In this case care has to be used that promiscuous crossing, or 
self-fertilization, does not take place. To guard against the 
former cover with netting to keep away insects about the time 
the pollen is ripe and, as a preventive of the latter, pry open 
gently the flowers to be operated on and remove the stamens 
with a pair of round-pointed scissors. This may be done just 
before the flower is ready to open, say the night before; if 
delayed until the pollen on the stamens is ripe, which is about 
the time the flower is expanded, it may be too late to prevent 
self-fertilization. 

Fragrance is an object which should be sought after in a 
new Rose; other qualifications are habit, form, color, freedom 
of bloom, and continuity of growth and bloom in Winter, if 
for indoor culture, and also hardiness, if for outside planting. 

It has been asserted that, to obtain double flowers, prefer- 
ence should be given to double and semi-double varieties for 
seed bearers; varieties should be selected with broad, thick, 
well formed petals, with perfect pistils and stamens visible. 



HYBRIDIZING 



45 




Rose Columbia 
A cross between Ophelia and Mrs, Geo. Shawyer. Flowers peach pink in 

color deepening as the Rose matures 
Photo courtesy E. G. Hill Co., Richmond, Ind. 



46 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Ophelia Supreme 
Delicate rose, base of petals flushed with chrome yellow- 
Photo courtesy^Chas. H. Totty, Madison, N. J. 



HYBRIDIZING 47 

An absolutely double flower would not possess these qualifi- 
cations and so would be incapable of producing seed. 

Single flowers will bear seed that will never produce more 
than a semi-double variety. Since American growers have 
been raising seedling Roses, rapid strides have been made in 
the advancement of a type or, rather, two distinct types of 
plants suited to our requirements- — one for outdoors and an- 
other for Winter forcing. 

It is best to plant the Roses intended for seed bearers away 
from others and to select varieties diff"ering in color and habit. 
The pistils or female organs of one are to be fertilized by the 
stamens or male organs of the other. A stamen with no 
anther or pollen bearer is barren. Down in the center of 
the flower is the ovary or seed pod. This ovary or embryo 
consists of several ovules. The pistil is composed of two 
parts, the style, a filament which leads from the ovary, and" 
the stigma, or rather thickened point at the end of the style. 
By the use of a microscope, one may observe the stigma 
pierced by an interceptible opening, the inside of which is 
hairy. This allows the pollen to adhere for the time being, 
and later to be carried down through the style to the ovule, 
which later develops into a seed. 

Authorities diff"er as to which of the parents the seedlings 
will most resemble and this question need not much concern 
the amateur. It would require years of study to reduce this 
question to a science, and personal experience will probably 
be the best teacher. 

When the flower is fully open it must be fertilized with 
another of a variety from which it is desired that the qualities 
be largely perpetuated in the seedlings. The two flowers se- 
lected should be in about the same stage of development. The 
anthers may be pressed between the thumb and finger and, if 
the yellow dust sticks to them, it is ripe and ready to use. It 
would be best to carry a flower of the male parent to the seed 



48 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

bearer. It may then be held over the latter flower and, by 
placing a finger over the bottom flower and striking the pollen 
bearer gently on it, the pollen will be shaken off and the work 
done. Or the pollen may be collected on a camel's hair or 
very fine brush, and thus conveyed from the anthers of one 
flower to the style of the other. 

The flower should then be protected so that neither the 
wind nor insects are able to carry other pollen or interfere in 
any way with the work done. When the flower has passed 
away, if the cross has been successful the seed pod will soon 
swell. If any decayed petals adhere to it they should be 
removed and the pods should be left on the bushes until fully 
ripe. Protect from birds or anything that might damage 
them, if outdoors. 

The same operations just described, may be carried on in 
an airy greenhouse, the plants to be grown in pots, as well as 
outdoors, with the advantage of a longer ripening season. 

John Cook tells us that 50 per cent of the seeds will not 
germinate, 25 per cent will come single, and out of the re- 
maining 25 per cent may be obtained two or three varieties 
worth growing on. 

Care must be taken, when syringing, about the time of 
fertilization, that no water gets into the flowers. 

The seed may be sown as soon as ripe. It should be 
rubbed out between the hands before being sown. Hard pods 
may be crushed and rubbed through a wire screen after which 
lay in the air to dry. If the seed is old, soak in water over 
night before sowing. Sow the seed in flats or pans filled with 
a mixture of loam and leaf mold; well mix in equal parts and 
see that the boxes or pans are well drained. After the seed is 
sown, water carefully, and cover with about one-half an inch 
of the same mixture to which a little sand has been added. 
They may then be placed in a cool greenhouse and should be 
kept moist. 



HYBRIDIZING 49 

It will take months for all the seed to germinate. They 
will require the same care and protection from harm that any 
other seedlings do. Flowers will probably appear on the seed- 
lings within a year. Some of the Bourbon and Chinese varie- 
ties have been known to flower when five or six weeks old. 
It is best to prevent rather than to encourage flowering at 
such an early stage, so that a good plant may be built up. 
As soon as they flower all plants with inferior blooms may be 
destroyed; preserve the best ones and, to save valuable time, 
eyes may be budded or cions grafted on to a vigorous 
growing stock. (See chapter on The Seedling-Inarch and 
Nurse-Plant Methods of Plant Propagation.) 

The Manetti is commonly used in America for this pur- 
pose. The Brier is preferred for certain kinds and other wild 
or hardy stocks may be tried. The Banksia stock has been 
proven very good for yellow varieties. 

It will take several years to test a variety and to try it out 
properly and decide whether it is worth growing and putting 
on the market. There are many qualifications a Rose must 
have and northing hurts a firm's reputation more than to 
send out a variety that will not prove desirable or profitable 
to grow. 

It is suggested that experiments be made in crossing the 
hardy varieties or, at least, infusing some hardy blood into the 
crosses so as to raise kinds which will be able to withstand 
the severity of our American climate. The Rugosa, Wichur- 
aiana and others of this type, are good to use for this purpose. 
It would seem that to make the Rose more popular with the 
masses varieties that succeed outdoors would be in great 
demand. 



CHAPTER VII 

THE SEEDLING-INARCH AND NURSE-PLANT 
METHODS OF PLANT PROPAGATION 

TTOR the matter which follows, we are indebted to the De- 
-*■ partment of Agriculture, Washington, D. C, our material 
being extracted from Bulletin No. 202, Bureau of Plant 
Industry, by Geo. W. Oliver. In an introductory note 
therein, David Fairchild, the agricultural explorer, in charge 
of the Department of Foreign Seed and Plant Introduction, 
says: 

"One of the most important factors in the creation of a 
plant industry which depends upon a perennial species is the 
rapid propagation of the plant. The possibility of bringing 
through the mails from any part of the world a few seeds of 
some rare plant is of relatively little moment if it is not backed 
up by adequate methods of quick reproduction from these few 
seeds, through a sexual propagation, in order to produce large 
numbers of individuals for experimental trial. One of the 
greatest drawbacks of horticulture is the time required to test 
a new variety originated from seed, and any method which 
shortens the time required to make such tests must appeal to 
everyone, whether an originator of new varieties or a tester 
of them, as of the greatest value. 

"The seedling-inarch method which has been worked out 
by Mr. Oliver, it is believed, is destined to prove of the great- 
est importance not only in connection with the propagation of 
the tropical and subtropical fruits and ornamental plants with 
which this Bulletin particularly deals (because it has been in 
his studies with them that he has come to realize its value), 

50 



THE SEEDLING-INARCH 



51 



but in a very wide range of plant industries in which the early- 
fruiting of a variety is very desirable. This shortening by a 
year or more of the time required for the fruiting of a new 
variety is believed to be a matter of such unusual importance 
as to be worthy of the widest publicity among all interested 
in the cultivation of plants. The discussion embodied in this 
Bulletin, while it indicates the present stage of our studies of 
certain tropical fruit industries, must be considered as having 
a much more general application than to these few new fruit 
possibilities which are as yet little known to the American 
public." 




Fig. 1. Rose seedlings, a cross between two varieties, four weeks 

after germination. Each seedling is grown close to the rim of a 

2-inch pot so as to facilitate an easy approach to the 

stock plants when inarching 



Those parts of the Bulletin which will especially interest 
our readers are here given : 

While investigating the asexual propagation of some trop- 
ical fruit trees and other plants, at the request of Dr. B,. T. 
Galloway, chief of the Bureau of Plant Industry, it was dis- 
covered by the writer that a large number of hard-wooded 
shrubs and trees are capable of very rapid increase when 
propagated by processes which may be termed the seedling- 
inarch and nurse-plant methods. 



52 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Fig. 2. The Rose seedlings shown in Fig. 1, four weeks after 
germination, prepared for inarching 



These methods are inexpensive and, owing to their sim- 
plicity, may be used by persons without previous experience 
in the propagation of plants. By these methods the ever- 
increasing number of plant breeders will be able to save much 
time in determining the value of hard-wooded plants raised 
by means of hybridization. They can be used in manipulat- 
ing seedlings of rare trees and shrubs intended for crossing, 
so that each plant will bloom in a much shorter time than if 
left to grow on its own roots. Seedlings of all hard-wooded 
plants resulting from collections made by travelers in foreign 



THE SEEDLING-INARCH 53 

countries may thus be brought to the flowering stage and their 
value determined quickly. 

The most remarkable feature of the new methods lies not 
only in their simplicity but also in the certainty of the unions 
which result. The writer has had very few unsuccessful 
unions and none among those classes of plants where the most 
suitable stocks are known and in common use. Not only is 
it possible to inarch a seedling a few weeks old to a large stock, 
but a moderate sized seedling stock can be inarched to a shoot 
of a rare shrub or tree having the same diameter as the stem 
of the seedling. A satisfactory union may thus be induced 
where other methods of asexual propagation have invariably 
failed. 

Rose seedlings resulting from crossing varieties have been 
inarched on Manetti stocks when the seedlings were from 
three to four weeks old, and they produced maximum sized 
flowers long in advance of those on seedling plants growing on 
their own roots. The rare Finger Lime, Citrus Australasica^ 
sometimes seen in a dwarf, sickly condition in greenhouse 
collections, has borne fruit two years after inarching on one 
of its congeners; and within nine months after flowering, 
hybrid seedlings between this Citrus and a cultivated Orange 
were in their turn inarched on two-year-old Lemon seedlings. 

Very young seedlings of hundreds of other rare hard- 
wooded plants may be worked on the same or allied species or 
genera, and their value determined much in advance of the 
time when they would flower on their own roots, or on plants 
obtained by grafting or budding from the mature shoots of 
the seedlings. 

Hard-wooded seedlings which need to be flowered in the 
shortest possible space of time, in order to determine their 
value, are used for inarching as soon as the first leaves attain 
a fairly firm texture, as, for example in the case of the Mango- 



54 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

steen. But when seedlings are used as stocks for the vegeta- 
tive propagation of established varieties by uniting the stocks 
to small branches, then larger seedlings are used, as for ex- 
ample, in the case of the Mango. 



M 








h^i 


^^S 


^Ht -"^v.iTr^^lH 




feg 


H 


u 




^tf^^^^H 




1 



Fig. 3. Rose seedlings, four weeks after germination, inarched to 

stocks of the Manetti Rose. During the process of uniting the 

seedlings are kept in a moist and growing condition by 

the soil held around the union by burlap. A good 

union is effected in three to four weeks 

Inarching Rose Seedlings 

Seedlings of some of the Rose groups resulting from cross- 
ing distinct varieties or otherwise take more than one season 
to produce flowers of maximum size to enable the breeder to 
judge of their merits. They take much longer to develop 
when budded on Manetti or other stocks, because in thaf case 
a considerable time has to elapse before the growth of the 
seedling is strong enough to give buds and wood fit for propa- 



THE SEEDLING-INARCH 55 

gation by budding or by grafting. Rose seedlings three to 
four weeks old, or after the first few character leaves are 
developed, lend themselves very readily to the seedling-in- 
arch method of propagation. Tea and Hybrid Tea seedling 
Roses will give flowers of maximum size very quickly after 
the tiny seedlings are inarched to strong-growing Manetti or 
other stocks, thereby saving much time in preliminary tests. 

The operation of inarching is simplified if each seedling is 
pricked off into a 2-in. pot shortly after the cotyledons are 
developed. The seedling should be placed as near the rim as 
possible (Fig. i). In two or three weeks the seedling makes 
sufficient growth to be removed from the pot, when a little 
fresh soil is held in place around the root by a piece of cloth 
about 5 in. square (Fig. 2). The ball containing the roots of 
the seedling is secured to the stock, the stem of the seedling 
being placed close to it, so that the inarch may be easily 
accomplished (Fig. 3). The union is a rapid one and becomes 
perfect some time before the cotyledons decay. 

It is well known that many seedling Roses on their own 
roots produce flowers before the cotyledons decay, but the 
flowers are necessarily small and have little to indicate their 
eventual value. The seedling-inarch system shortens very 
considerably the period between germination and the pro- 
duction of flowers of maximum size — a material aid to the 
breeder in determining the value of the seedling within a few 
months after germination (Fig. 4). 

Seedlings raised from seeds of new and rare trees, shrubs, 
and vines may be induced to grow very quickly if used as 
cions when a few weeks old, by inarching to strong-growing 
plants of other species of the same genus, or in some cases on 
species of other genera of the same family. This has been 
done recently with such plants as Chestnuts, Walnuts, Haw- 
thorns, Oaks, and many others. It is not necessarily done 
for the purpose of hastening the flowering or the fruiting of 



56 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 



new plants, but to give quickly an abundance of material for 
propagation by budding or grafting when the new material 
is assumed to be valuable. 

If a hard-wood seedling of hybrid origin is tied to a large 
stock and they fail to unite, there is little or no danger of 
losing the seedling, provided its roots are kept damp during 
the period of making the attempt. If the inarch is not suc- 
cessful, the seedling can be repotted and grown in the usual 
way. 




Fig. 4. Inarched Rose seedling, showing the growth made in two 
months after inarching. (One and one-fourth times natural size) 



CHAPTER VIII 

PREPARATION OF THE SOIL FOR PLANTING 

THE best soil for planting Roses is that taken from the 
top of good pasture land out of the open field. Avoid 
hedgerows, and loam from under trees, as it is liable to be 
either full of insect pests or sour. Plow up as much as you 
need in the Fall or in early Spring. Sod is easier to work after 
Fall plowing. If you wait until Spring, plow early and take 
off the loam before the grubs come up from their Winter 
quarters. For small growers, the old-fashioned loam pile 
may be the best method. 

Commence by laying out the shape and size desired by 
placing the sod and loam about a foot thick. On this spread 
four inches of good fresh cow manure and keep this up until 
you have a pile about six feet high which, when covered with 
loam, will consist of one-fourth or one-fifth good cow manure. 
Turn the top layer of sod grass down. Do not take off 
more than six inches of loam from the field. In two weeks 
this loam pile may be chopped down, well mixed and turned 
over, choosing good sunny weather for this work. After two 
weeks more it may be turned over again and is ready for use. 
This is the old-fashioned method. 

On most large places today, a pair of horses and a disc- 
harrow are put on to a piece of ground to cut up the sod after 
plowing. The top loam and sod are then scraped into rows 
about a foot deep and as wide as can be worked with the har- 
row. The manure is spread on and mixed with the harrow. 
On some places, lime or bonemeal is mixed in at this time. 
This way is much quicker than piling up loam and chopping 
down by hand, and has the advantage of exposing the soil to 
the sun and air all the time. This is still true. 

57 



58 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Benches or Solid Beds 

Roses may be successfully grown on benches or in solid 
beds. On some of our largest places benches are used alto- 
gether; on others we find all solid beds. Whatever style is 
used good drainage is essential. On most places there is little 
difference in the results at the end of the year, providing all 
the essential details have been carried out. If the benches 
give a little better result in Midwinter, the solid beds will 
■ probably make up the difference in the Summer. Benches 
should be built rather narrow than wide, as the former are 
easier to work among and give better results. The best 
Roses are grown on the outside of the benches, where they 
get the maximum amount of air and light; those in the middle 
of a very wide bench are always the poorest. Five feet is the 
widest a bench should be built. We prefer one four feet wide, 
and plant four rows of plants sixteen inches apart in the row. 
Other growers get good results on benches four feet three 
inches wide and plant five rows sixteen inches apart. 

The sides of the benches may be six inches deep, which 
allows for top-dressing, and plants may be grown success- 
fully several years in such a bench. When the benches are 
filled with loam, the top of the soil should be level with the 
bottom of the glass in the sides of the houses. 

Solid beds are best made by building a wall of cement, 
brick, or tile, of the required height, and filling in the bottom 
with any good drainage. These walls need not be more than 
1 inches thick if good material is used. These need not be 
built as high as the benches, on account of the expense, but 
should be well up into the light. Give the benches a good 
coating of lime wash and fill the house with the loam as 
quickly as possible. Never handle the loam when it is wet 
if it can be avoided. Put on as large a gang as possible, for 
this is the hardest work of the year, and the mutual benefit 



PREPARATION OF THE SOIL 



59 




Rose Mrs. George Shawyer 
Bright clear rose; high pointed center 




60 



Rose Mme. Paul Euler, or Prima Donna 
Brilliant rose pink; fragrant and free flowering 



PREPARATION OF THE SOIL 61 

the men get from having a crowd able to handle the work 
well and quickly, when all are doing their best, will mean 
better work in a shorter time. And time is money In planting 
Roses for, as soon as they are planted, they begin their work 
and never cease until they are thrown out or dried off for the 
following Summer. 

Filling the Benches with Soil 

The easiest way to fill houses is to have a movable sash 
on the sides of the house, then to draw the carts alongside and 
to throw the loam inside to the men, who pass it along and 
spread it on the benches. This is a much quicker way than 
the old-fashioned wheelbarrow method, although, in extra 
wide houses, it might be wheeled inside to advantage. On 
uptodate places a movable track and trucks on four wheels 
are used. These trucks will hold from four to six times as 
much as a wheelbarrow and may be easily operated by two 
men. Six men will do as much with these as twelve men can 
do without them on long hauls. Level off with a rake, as you 
go along, so as to make sure of getting the benches filled 
evenly. Tread down after filling, unless the loam is wet or 
of a clayey nature. It may then be raked lightly to give it 
the final leveling, then marked off. 

Marking off the Benches 

We use a marker, made of light wooden strips, after the 
style of a tooth harrow. It is just wide enough to fit inside 
the benches so the plants can never get out of line. Com- 
mence by setting it down on one end of the bed, pressing it 
into the soil so as to leave the marks where the plants are to 
be set. Twenty-four holes can be marked off at one time, 
when lifted by one man (or by a man on either side, for more 



62 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

rapid work); it is set down again with one row of pegs in the 
end holes; in this way every place must be accurately marked 
and the time saved is considerable. A line is often in the 
way when planting, and time is lost in moving it from one 
place to another. With the marker the full width of the bed 
can be planted at once if necessary. On many places the 
simple expedient of using a light square pole, as long as can 
conveniently be handled, having marks upon it the distance 
apart that the plants are to be set out, laying this on top of 
the bench and making pencil marks on the bench board the 
entire length, corresponding to the marks on the pole, and 
then planting by these marks, using the eye as a guide. 

Planting the Rose Bushes 

Let a good man pick out the stock; all poor plants should 
be rejected. It costs no more to care for good ones and the 
returns are much larger than from the inferior plants. It will 
keep two men busy carrying in the plants and setting them 
out on the benches, two more to dig holes, and two of the 
best men to plant. 

As soon as planted the soil around each plant should be 
pounded down with a piece of hard wood, making it firm and 
leaving a slight hole around each plant so that it may be 
watered without wetting all the soil in the bed. Give the 
plants a good soaking to settle the soil well around them; no 
more water is then to be given until the plants are on the dry 
side, but syringe well several times daily and damp down the 
walks and beds to maintain a growing atmosphere. 

There is little fear of too much damping down in the 
scorching days of Midsummer; with the houses wide open 
evaporation is rapid, and the plants will not make a good 
growth unless well damped down; but avoid soaking the loam 
in the benches or it may sour. Cultivate the ground by 



PREPARATIOiN OF THE SOIL 



63 





Section of a house of Rose Pilgrim 

Photo courtesy A. N. Pierson, Inc., Cromwell, Conn. 



PREPARATION OF THE SOIL 65 

scratching over the top once a week for a few weeks. This 
will kill the weeds, aerate the soil and conserve the moisture. 

As soon as the roots spread through the benches, discon- 
tinue the cultivating, or be very careful to go lightly on top so 
as not to injure the roots. Keep the young plants tied up and 
keep them clean in every way. Increase the water given as 
the plants grow, but always be careful in the Fall not to overdo 
it. As the nights lengthen and get cooler, reduce the syring- 
ing and damping down processes and always have the foliage 
dry before sundown. 

Before leaving the subject of planting I might mention 
that a cloudy day is much the best for this work — best for 
the men, and also for the plants. On at least one of the 
largest commercial ranges I know of a gang is put on at 
4 a.m. old time and the planting for the day is finished by 
9 a.m. 

Plant the varieties subject to mildew away from others not 
so liable to be affected, and plant some Richmond, Killarney, 
and similar varieties, in solid beds, if possible, as these come 
with more substance in the hot weather on solid beds than on 
benches. 

Disposal of Old Loam 

The old loam from the houses may be spread back on the 
land, reseeded, and in a few years' time will be good to use 
over again, if needed. There is nothing better for top-dressing 
grass land than old soil taken out of the Rose benches. 



CHAPTER IX 

GENERAL CULTURE 

'T^HE work after planting will consist of careful attention 
-*- to detail as regards the culture of the plants and in 
pushing ahead all unfinished construction work as quickly as 
possible. The time passes very quickly and the sooner 
everything is in good shape the better it will be. The heating 
apparatus should be tested and kept in readiness for use as 
soon as needed. 

Cutting off the Buds 

The object, at first, is to get the beds filled with roots and 
to get good healthy plants of a fair size. The flower buds are 
cut off" through the Summer and thrown away. Some 
growers take off the buds when about the size of peas, while 
others leave them until the flower is open before removing 
them. I would advise taking them off as soon as they show 
color. We are guided by the size and condition of the plant 
when disbudding. Take off any useless wood with the 
bud, but leave on every good leaf and eye; generally one 
or two of the top leaves only are taken off when throw- 
ing away the buds. 

After the plants have attained some size, say in September, 
a few of the best buds on each plant may be allowed to de- 
velop, still pinching off the buds from the smaller wood. This 
helps to build up the plant and, when the flowers are removed, 
there is not such a shock given the plant as when all the 
flowers are removed at once. The smaller plants may be dis- 

66 



GENERAL CULTURE 67 

budded up to the time that they catch up to the larger ones 
when they will be in good shape to work all through the 
Winter months. 

If flowers are desired for special occasions, eight weeks 
should be allowed, in Midwinter, after the final pinching, and 
six weeks in Midsummer. This time is approximate; it could 
not be given exactly, as time varies with the ever changing 
weather conditions, and what is just right this year may be a 
week or more wrong the next. 

Where a succession. of bloom is desired, which is really 
what every man needs, a good plan is to start the plants 
flowering at intervals of two weeks, dividing them up into as 
many lots as possible or desirable, according to the size of the 
place and the requirements of the market. 

Staking the Plants 

Staking should be done as soon as possible after planting. 
We use stakes of No. 9 wire, four feet long. These are 
fastened with clips at the top, to a wire running the length of 
the bed and securely fastened and held tight on the ends; 
No. 18, or bench wire, is used for this. This wire, and 
the stakes, are galvanized, and last a great many years. 
These are for Tea and Hybrid Tea Roses. For American 
Beauty Roses an arrangement of wire and strings, such 
as is used for Asparagus, Smilax, or Chrysanthemums, is 
generally used. 

Tie up all plants neatly and carefully in such a manner 
that the string will not cut the bark, and avoid bunching the 
foliage. Never crowd the leaves. Simply tie up the shoots 
for support, always leaving room for the sun and air to get 
at the plants and on the beds, and for the water to reach 
every part when syringing. 



68 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Watering 

Watering must be done carefully, especially in the dark 
days of W^inter. Generally speaking, this can be done about 
once a week on light soils, all Winter, but no rule will apply 
everywhere alike. It is better to err on the under watering 
side than to overdo it in November and December, although I 
have seen benches, which would not dry out, which were 
benefited by having a thorough soaking of warm water 
applied so heavily that it ran through the bottom and cleared 
away any sourness which mught have been existing in the 
soil. After the middle of January, or early February, Roses 
will take more water, and it is almost impossible, as the 
season advances, to overdo this if only reasonable care is 
used. 

Manuring the Plants 

W^e commence using manure water on the young stock in 
the early Fall, giving it lightly and using it weak at first, in- 
creasing the strength and quantity used as the conditions 
warrant. Little but the regular weekly application of manure 
water is used through the Winter, although this has to be 
governed by conditions. When planting we use nothing but 
cow manure in the loam. About September or October, we 
apply a light dusting of bonemeal, using about loo lbs. for 
every 2000 square feet of bench surface. This may be worked 
into the soil by rubbing over lightly with the fingers, and then 
covering with an inch or more of equal parts of good cow 
manure and loam, and well watering. Be careful after this 
that the beds do not get too wet with the subsequent water- 
ings. This mulching will carry the plants through the dark 
days. If too much is applied, making a heavy blanket on 
the beds, harm is often done as the beds cannot dry out and 
the loam gets cold and sour. 



GENERAL CULTURE 69 

Toward Spring, when the sun gets powerful, it is often 
beneficial to apply a good coating of green cow manure, cover- 
ing this with a sprinkling of loam to keep the nitrogen 
from escaping. A little air should be left on the house day and 
night for two or three nights when applying this, or the 
foliage may be burned. It is best to apply this manure when 
the beds are in a condition to take water; then give a good 
soaking as soon as the manure is on, and cover with loam 
before night. In this way nothing is lost and the loam cover- 
ing is not washed down immediately. If the beds do not 
require water at this time, cover with loam as soon as 
the manure is applied and let stand for several days 
before watering; by so doing the beds will absorb some 
of the nitrogen from the manure, but not so much as 
when watered in at once. This is considered the best 
way by some growers. 

Ventilation 

Ventilating is an operation so simple, and yet so important 
that special mention should be made of it. In the first place, 
sudden changes should be avoided. In Midsummer the 
houses are wide open at the top and often the end doors are 
open, in addition to side ventilation in very wide houses. 
And yet there is not a night in the hottest weather when 
this air is not reduced, commencing to reduce earlier in 
the afternoon and to increase later in the morning as 
the cool weather approaches. There is no set time for 
this. A cold storm may come in Midsummer, making 
it imperative to reduce air and start the fires, but, as a 
rule, the transition is gradual and almost imperceptible, 
like the changing seasons. 

Some air is left on all night, excepting in the cold Winter 
months. When three or four ij^-inch steam pipes will not 



70 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

keep up the required temperature in a house 32 feet wide, the 
night man closes the house for a few hours; and it is the same 
with houses 50 to 60 feet wide, if five pipes, or six at the most, 
will not keep up the warmth. In warm weather, in Spring 
and Fall, the steam is turned on as soon as the temperature 
commences to fall, which is between 8 p.m. and midnight, 
according to the season, and left on a few hours, when it is 
taken off and turned on again in the early morning, about 
daylight, for two hours more should it have been too warm 
to keep up the heat all night. 

We always keep one or two pipes painted with sulphur and 
use these at this time of the year. This is the best known 
remedy and preventive for mildew, although there may be 
no signs of mildew on the plants as yet, it is best to be on the 
safe side and kill any spores that might possibly be in the 
house, for during the period of short days and dark weather, 
mildew once established would spread rapidly and do much 
damage before it could be checked. Avoid using too much 
sulphur, for too strong sulphur fumes take the color from 
both the flowers and foliage. This is especially noticeable 
on pink Roses. More about the use of sulphur will be found 
in Chapter Twelve of this book. 

In the Winter, little air can be given, but in the Spring, 
as the sun gets stronger, it is most important to commence 
to ventilate early. A good grower will anticipate the chang- 
ing temperature, the object of which is to increase the amount 
of air without lowering the temperature in the houses. 
Increase the air little and otten, and let the rise be gradual 
from sunrise to noon; the fall from noon to sunset to be 
along the same line. 

Always avoid draughts when ventilating. Where the 
house has continuous ventilation on both sides of the roof 
this is easy, as, by opening both sides a little in windy 
weather, the air passes through the top without beating 



GENERAL CULTURE 



71 




Rose Mme. Butterfly 
''A glorified Ophelia," being a sport of that meritorious variety. It 
is even better in growth than the parent, its color being more intense 

and producing a harmony of bright pink suffused with apricot 
Photo courtesy E. G. Hill, Richmon'^, Ind. 



72 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Lady Alice Stanley 
Deep rose pink on outside of petal, inside clear shell pink 



GENERAL CULTURE 73 

down on the plants; or the lee side may be opened wide while 
the side to windward is kept closed. 

Cleanliness 

All routine work should be done well and on time, and the 
houses kept clean and plants free at all times from all pests 
and diseases. Air slaked lime may be sprinkled occasionally 
under the benches. The walks should be kept clean and free 
from muddy places or standing water, although they should 
be damped down often enough so that they are never dust dry. 

How Long to Run the Plants 

Such varieties as Kaiserin, Carnot, and others, used for 
Summer flowering, may remain for years undisturbed and pro- 
duce the best flowers in this way. Summer Roses will do well 
in a house not quite so good as the ones required for Winter, 
but for Winter work the best houses are required, and, 
generally speaking, these houses are replanted about every 
three years. 

If one-third of the place is planted every twelve months, 
you have plants in all stages of growth, and can keep up a suc- 
cession of flowers all the year around. Commence to dry ofl" 
a part at a time and rest it about a month. Then you 
can start a few benches every two weeks, which will enable 
you to start up the last lot in time to bring in a good crop 
for Christmas. 

It is advisable to leave Roses undisturbed if they are doing 
well and are desirable varieties rather than to replant. They 
may be left much longer in solid beds than on benches. 

Resting and Restarting the Plants 

Commence to rest your plants by withholding water grad- 
ually and syringing but little. Do not let the soil get so dry 



74 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

that it cracks apart, or the wood so dry that it will shrivel. 
More harm is done by too much drying than otherwise, and it 
takes such plants a long time to get a new start. When ready 
to start a batch, cut them down about halfway; this is an 
operation which may be varied somewhat. We have had 
good results from leaving plants thirty inches high and just as 
good when they were cut down to within ten inches of the 
ground. Some growers object to cutting down Killarney. 
We have had good results in almost every style and would 
cut back hard any time before the middle of August. After 
Sept. 1st we would not cut back very much. Some growers 
tie down their old plants, others prefer to leave them standing 
upright. There is little difference in the result, perhaps a 
greater tendency to black spot where tied down, as the air 
cannot circulate through the bushes so well in this case. As 
a rule the earlier it is in the season the harder we cut them. 

As soon as pruned we scrape off the top loose soil, sprinkle 
with bonemeal, and then apply a good coat of loam and cow 
manure in equal parts, about two inches thick. The beds are 
then well watered; this is best done by going over them two or 
three times, as soon as the covering is on and then repeating 
the operation the next day. After they are once soaked, no 
more water at the roots is required for some time, but the tops 
will require syringing several times daily to induce the plants 
to make a new growth. As they grow they will require the 
usual treatment. It is well, when replanting in the Summer, 
to pot up a few of the best plants before throwing out stock 
from benches. These will be found useful to fill in any vacant 
space or to replace poorer plants among the stock carried 
over. 

Night and Day Temperature 

The best night temperature for the general run of Roses is 
58° to 60°. Some varieties require more heat, but, as a rule, 



GENERAL CULTURE 



75 



these are not profitable kinds for the small grower to handle. 
The heat should rise to 70° or 75° at noon on every sunny- 
day in the Winter. On stormy zero days, it will sometimes 
be impossible, nor is it desirable to increase the temperature 
more than a few degrees by noon, and in semi-dark weather 
68° at noon gives the best results in the long run. 




CHAPTER X 

CROPPING ROSES 

A STEADY supply of Roses is an essential for the grower 
-^ ^ in order that his customers may look to him regularly 
fbr their stock. It is a matter of convenience to the retailer 
and is much more likely to result in a regular customer for the 
grower than the practice of having irregular crops and, at 
times, practically no flowers at all. 

There are two common ways of ensuring this result. The 
first is to allow the plants to grow along, taking care that 
there is no well defined crop in any one section of the place, 
but such a scattering of the flowers as will ensure getting a 
fair cut each day. The second, is by the use of a system of 
crops planned so as to produce an even supply, especially 
during the Winter months. Variations of the latter or 
"cropping" method are commonly used on the large com- 
mercial places, and consist of pinching back shoots at definite 
times in order that flowers may be produced at or around 
certain dates. 

In order to do this successfully, the time it takes to grow a 
flower from a pinched shoot must be known both for the 
different seasons of the year, and under the conditions obtain- 
ing at the place in question. During the months of more or 
less heavy firing, some parts of every house or section will 
habitually run several degrees warmer than other parts, and 
this has to be taken into account. The warm parts must be 
skipped for several days when the plants in the cooler part 
are pinched if it is desired to bring in the whole section into 
bloom at a given date. 

76 



GENERAL CULTURE 



77 




Rose Rosalind 
Coral pink changing to apricot pink 
Photo courtesy F. R. Pierson Co., Tarrytown, N. Y. 



78 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Mrs. Kenry Winnett 
A seedling from Mrs. Geo. Shawyer and Mrs. Chas. Russell; 
in color almost as dark red as Hadley 



During the Summer and early Fall, five to six weeks will 
pass from the time a shoot is pinched until a flower is ready 
to cut. Later in the season it will be necessary to allow a 
longer time, until during early Winter seven or eight weeks 



GENERAL CULTURE 79 

will be needed in the case of most of the Roses grown today. 
If dull weather sets in with little sun heat, eight weeks will not 
be quite enough to allow. In wide sections the plants on the 
north side may be backward while those to the south may be 
about right. This may be overcome by running most of the 
heating pipes along the north side of the house. Shoots may 
be pinched any time after the bud shows; the best plant will 
result if the pinching is done when the bud is ready to show 
color, and the wood is soft enough to break easily. 

In order to get a steady supply from different crops it will 
be necessary to divide the plants into groups, each of which 
may consist of the contents of a bench or a house, depending 
on the size of the place. There should be at least eight 
groups, each containing about the same number of plants, 
unless it is desired to bring in more blooms on a certain date. 
In this case the group that is to give this added supply must 
be made proportionate in size to the cut of flowers desired. 
Each group should contain its share of the different varieties 
grown, for the reason that all red one week and all white or 
pink the following weeks would not, in all probability, suit 
the needs of the customer, and it is the regular customer 
that should be taken care of first. 

That we may see how this will work out we will assume a 
place of 20,000 plants, divided as to varieties into about 7000 
white, 7000 pink and 6000 red. Now since it takes about 
eight weeks for a shoot to grow and bloom after pinching, 
during the early Winter, each of our varieties must be divided 
into eight groups, in order that the first pinched will develop 
its blooms and start a new crop just after the eighth bed or 
group is pinched. This gives us in each group a little less 
than nine hundred plants each of pink and white, and about 
seven hundred of red. We want flowers at Christmas, and 
during the succeeding weeks of high prices, in steady supply. 
Eight weeks before Christmas is, for our purpose, October 



80 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

28th, and shoots pinched on that date will probably flower 
just before Christmas. To make sure, we will go back a 
week to October 21st (which will give us nine weeks) and on 
that date we will take a group each of the different colors and 
pinch them. One week later another group will be taken 
and so on until all of the eight groups are pinched. This 
arrangement will probably bring the first group in about a 
week before Christmas, followed in order by the other groups. 
If the weather is unfavorable the growing period will be 
lengthened a few days; if favorable, a shorter time will be 
necessary to mature blooms. In the former case, those 
pinched October 28th for Christmas will be a little late, but 
we will have in their place those pinched October 21st. In 
the second case, we may get some of the third group as well 
as the second, with the others following in order. Whatever 
happens, there will be a good supply. We will suppose that 
everything comes along as expected. The first group which 
began flowering December i6th should be in again about 
eight weeks later when the last of the eight groups will have 
produced its crop. The second will follow, and so on until 
the round is completed a second time. 

It is necessary for the grower to use good judgment in 
handling these groups if he desires to keep them well defined. 
The tendency is for them to run together or scatter. This 
can be overcome largely by pinching stray shoots at the 
proper time so that they will flower with the rest of the group 
to which they belong. On the first round, the last of the 
eight groups will flower near the first of February and at 
about that time the first one pinched will be coming into 
bloom again. This second series of bloom will carry us along 
until well into March, with groups of flowering plants coming 
along steadily, provided all of them grow and set their buds, or 
in other words, provided we get flowering instead of blind 
wood. If we get blind wood it is no fault of the grouping, but 



GENERAL CULTURE 81 

must be charged to the weather or to some fault in the treat- 
ment of the plants. 

About the first of March there comes a quickening tend- 
ency, and the plants take on a new and livelier appearance. 
The period of growth will then gradually shorten until, 
during the warm weather of May and June, six weeks will be 
the average time between one pinching or crop and the next. 
This will disarrange any plan used during the Winter and 
will call for some change if it is desired to continue with a 
succession of crops. If, in the judgment of the grower, it is 
not advantageous to use the crop system at this time, some 
other method may be employed. Replanting old, or planting 
new, stock will somewhat break up the Summer cut and what 
houses are to be kept running may be divided into units and 
one lot after another pinched every six days. By taking off 
all the weak shoots and leaving the best ones, a steady supply 
of good flowers may be had all through the Summer. 

If extra flowers are wanted for Easter a larger block may 
be pinched about seven weeks before that date, and for 
Memorial Day, April 15 is about the right date in an average 
season. When Easter comes very early allow a few days 
longer. By this time, if not systematically pinched, the 
different groups will have run into each other, and mixed in 
such a way that there will be some plants blooming in all the 
groups at the same time. This of course, will answer the pur- 
pose by providing a steady supply just as well as the succes- 
sion of crops could do. At this season of the year the extra 
time needed to keep a crop system working well is not easily 
found on many places growing Roses, and opinion is divided 
as to the merits of either plan. Nevertheless, it has been 
stated to the writer by growers who have tried out both ways, 
that the crop system followed all through the year has always 
been the most satisfactory and has brought in the largest 
returns financially. 



CHAPTER XI 

RESTING ROSES IN WINTER 

THIS method has been in use for many years on certain 
places where a number of Roses are grown. It was 
generally followed or practiced with the oldest or poorest 
houses, which were planted (generally in solid beds) with 
varieties that were at their best in the Summer. A notable 
example is the Rose "Kaiserin Augusta Victoria," of which 
the name has been changed by some growers and dealers to 
"Victoria," or "The Victory" Rose. Another is "President 
Carnot," and other varieties were so treated by different 
growers. It was found that the plants did much better and 
gave greater profit during the Summer, after their rest, than 
they could have, had they been kept at a growing temperature, 
during the cold, dark months of the year. While being 
rested they were usually kept at a little above the freezing 
point, but during the Winter of 1917-18 many houses went 
below that point. During the European War, when the con- 
sumption of coal was restricted, this method was more 
generally followed than ever before, and where intelligently 
worked out, it was very successful. It is a question for the 
individual grower to decide whether to keep all his houses 
going practically all of the year, or to follow some other 
method where he can arrange his crops to meet his own needs 
or to fill the requirements of his market. 

If it is desired to rest a house during the Winter, the drying 
and cooling off process may begin in October or early 
November, with a corresponding early start into growth again. 
Or the plants may be kept producing flowers until after the 

82 




Rose Double White Killarney 
Pure waxy white flowers 
Photo courtesy A. N. Pierson, Inc., Cromwell, Conn. 



83 



81 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




GENERAL CULTURE 85 

Christmas crop has been cut, which is generally about the 
time that settled cold weather arrives and when the maxi- 
mum amount of coal would have to be burned to keep up a 
normal temperature. Commence by gradually withholding 
the water supply and reducing the fire heat, allowing the 
night temperature to drop several degrees every few nights, 
with corresponding falls in the daytime. After a few weeks 
or a month of this treatment, a night temperature a little 
below freezing may be reached, and practically all growth 
will have ceased. Give air as required to keep the houses 
cool day or night, particularly if a warm spell intervenes, and 
keep the houses dry. This cold treatment may be continued 
for a few weeks or longer, as occasion requires, the plants 
being kept dry in the meantime. When it is desired to start 
them into growth again, cut them down to within a foot or so 
of the ground and water the beds thoroughly for several days 
until the ground is well soaked. Then give the soil a good 
coating of manure and water this well. 

No more water is required until the plants are leaved out, 
when they may be watered regularly, commencing gradually 
at first, and increasing the amount as growth progresses. 
While care is required in this operation, do not make the 
mistake of keeping the plants too dry, for once they start to 
grow, it is surprising what a lot of water they will need and 
thrive on. The critical stage is after the buds swell and be- 
fore the leaves appear and this is when they should be carried 
a little on the dry side; after this stage is passed, water lib- 
erally as required. 

If you wish to break up your crop you can commence at 
the front of the house and start up those plants first, taking 
one or more beds at stated intervals. Allow several weeks 
to elapse before starting those on the north side, keeping this 
part of the house cooler in the meantime. This is done com- 
paratively easily in a wide house in Midwinter by using the 



86 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Steam pipes to the south, and omitting all on the north 
side that you can without causing too great a difference in 
the section. 

If the house is long and it is desired to rest only one 
section, a partition may be erected temporarily to divide the 
cold end from the part being kept in active growth. This 
could easily be done if at planting time the Roses to be so 
treated were all at one end of the house. If the contingency 
was not provided for and these plants were in between two 
warm sections, of course two partitions would be necessary. 
Even so, it has been found to be a paying proposition to buy 
lumber for this purpose since, the same lumber can after- 
ward be used for other purposes. The partition of boards 
may be used at the lower part, and cotton cloth, canvas, 
heavy paper, or glass utilized up above. 

When the buds first swell it is sometimes advisable to 
rub off a part of them and allow only from three to five of 
the strongest to develop on each plant. These are afterward 
pinched back if quality of bloom and length of stem are the 
first consideration. One or two flowers might be allowed to 
develop on each plant on the first break if they were urgently 
needed for the market, and in this way a few flowers could be 
cut in March from this stock. However, a better plant will 
result if all the shoots are pinched back on the first break, and 
the best flowers are allowed to develop on the second. 

After the middle of March, with sunny days and a night 
temperature of 58° or 60°, a crop that is well advanced may 
be hurried along somewhat if it is late for a certain date (such 
as Easter) by taking advantage of the sun heat, keeping the 
steam on rather longer in the morning, giving just a little air 
during the warmest part of the day, say from 10 a.m. to 
about I p.m., and starting with the steam again early in 
the afternoon. A light spraying overhead two or three times 
daily with clear water during the warmest part of each sunny 



GENERAL CULTURE 



87 



day will protect and develop the foliage, and will hurry along 
the flowers. There is no danger of hurting well established 
and growing stock by this practice if extremes and sudden 
changes are avoided. The more sun heat we get every day, 
combined with active fire heat during the remainder of the 
twenty-four hours, the more water we can use with good 
results. 

It should always be borne in mind, however, that a crop 




Fig. 1, is a green bud, actual size, which will take at least ten days 
under the best conditions before it can be cut for market. In three or 
four days this bud will have advanced to the second stage, as shown in 
Fig. 2, and will be showing color. Four days later it will be of the size 
of Fig. 3, and be well colored, and three days after this stage is reached 
it may be cut. 



88 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

of Roses, like a great many other things that we grow, will be 
of a better quality if it is not unduly forced. If the limit of 
wisdom is passed in forcing the plants along it will be done at 
the expense of color and substance of bloom. 

The illustration on page 87 may be of help to the beginner 
as showing the time required to perfect flowers after the buds 
are of a certain size, during the latter part of March, and 
under the best conditions in regard to sunny days, and a 
steady supply of steam at night. It applies to the average 
varieties generally grown today. It would be well for every 
grower to make notes for himself by tagging certain buds 
and so get posted on just what happens on his own place. 

The general care and routine work will be much the same 
whether the plants were rested early and are started into 
growth again about the first of the year, or whether they were 
rested after Christmas, and started about March ist, when 
less fire heat is needed to bring them along. March ist is a 
good time to start up plants for Memorial Day. Cut down 
the plants, and soak the beds thoroughly, promptly put on 
the top-dressing as soon as possible after this, delaying this 
step not more than ten days or two weeks in any event. The 
beds will dry out faster now and the plants will come into 
action quicker than the ones that were started in Midwinter. 
These plants may have every shoot pinched back if a large 
crop of medium grade flowers is wanted for Memorial Day, 
commencing to pinch about April 14 in the coolest part of 
the house, and working toward the warmest parts so as to 
finish up there about April 18, if the whole crop is wanted at 
one time. 

During Midwinter, when plants are first started, a night 
temperature of 42° will suffice. This may be continued for 
several weeks, and then gradually increased as growth pro- 
gresses until the flower buds are of good size (which will be 
about ten weeks after starting), when the maximum may be 



GENERAL CULTURE 89 

reached. If you have plenty of time for any desired date, 
grow the plants rather cool right along and you will get better 
flowers. You can hurry them a little toward the finish if it 
is needed, but do not run them warm early in the process and 
then drop them down or you will check the growth and may 
get mildew. You will get poorer results in any case. I am 
speaking here of sudden or extreme changes. A little cooling 
off under favorable conditions is permissible when finishing 
a crop. 

Plants treated in this way will be stocky and fairly close 
to the ground, and those of the Ophelia type will require no 
tying. 

During the War, when there was acute shortage of help 
and a scarcity of tying material, a number of Roses were 
grown with less tying than heretofore, with good all round 
results. Of course some support is needed for young plants, 
and for overgrown old stock, but in a number of cases tying 
has been largely dispensed with. 

Where Rose stakes are in use, a stout line of cotton twine 
may be fastened to the supports on one end, pulled tight, and 
made fast on the other end, making a straight line outside 
the bed. Then walk along the bench and wherever there 
are shoots outside the line, pull out the string so as to allow 
them to fall back into place, then let the string drop into 
position again. This will give you a clear passageway and 
hold up the flowers. The line can be looped back to the 
stakes at intervals of twenty-five feet or so to hold it in its 
proper place. As the plants grow, straggling shoots will get 
outside the line. In such cases the loop ties can be cut, the 
operation of stretching the line out repeated until all the 
shoots are inside, then the loop put back in place again. A 
good deal of time and labor can be saved :n this way; when 
cutting the flowers there is a further saving, since there are 
no ties to bother with. 



90 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

One important thing to remember when starting a crop is 
to commence with a clean house, syringe well in the early 
stages of the process, then syringe as little as possible after 
growth is well advanced until the crop is cut off. When you 
syringe with a crop coming along, do it very carefully, using 
a nozzle that shoots the water upward. Avoid driving the 
shoots over sideways, or knocking them down, which will 
cauSe a number of bent stems and crooked necked flowers. 

While carrying out this resting process, houses may, if 
desired, be shut down altogether for the Winter, pipes drained 
to prevent their freezing, and the plants covered with salt 
marsh hay or some similar covering. ' Uncover them in the 
Spring and start without fire heat for Summer crops. This 
method has been satisfactorily practiced in cases of accident, 
of extreme coal shortage, or when the houses were practically 
unfit for Winter forcing. 



CHAPTER XII 

INSECT PESTS 

Aphis 

GREEN FLY or aphis is a pest so common that it needs 
no description. These insects were hard to overcome 
and did much damage, years ago, when burning Tobacco 
stems was in vogue to the detriment of the flowers. We have 
now good proprietary articles advertised in the trade papers 
which are so effective in killing green fly, and so harmless to 
the flowers, that there is no excuse for anyone being troubled 
by these pests; the cost of the remedies, although rather high, 
is not excessive when the results obtained are considered. 

In burning the various forms of nicoteen paper, follow the 
directions given as closely as possible. Do not wait until a 
house is overrun before applying the remedy, but fumigate 
lightly and often. If you apply preventive measures and 
never see any green fly, which is possible, you are better off^ 
than if you await their arrival and then give a heavy dose. 
All fumigation is best done on a still night when the air is 
moist inside. A good, sharp syringing, if the weather is fine 
the next morning, will clean ofi^ and freshen up the plants. 
In case of neglect, where the fly is thick and established, two 
or three fumigations, at intervals of one or two days each, 
will be necessary to clean them out. 

Red Spider 

Red spider is another pest common in some Rose houses, 
but is easily controlled if the proper measures are taken 
for its suppression. It is not usually troublesome on Roses 
out of doors, but under glass they may breed at any season of 

91 



92 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

the year. These insects are so small as to be scarcely dis- 
cernible with the naked eye, and their presence is made known 
by the coloring of the leaf. These insects live on the under- 
side of the leaf; here they lay their eggs, which they protect 
with a fine silken web, in consequence of which they are hard 
to destroy. 

The best remedy is a good, sharp syringing on the under- 
side of the leaves, taking care to reach every part to dislodge 
them all. The water must be forcibly applied; it is ineffective 
otherwise; a pressure of 60 lbs. to the square inch is good; less 
than 40 lbs. is not enough. A thin, sharp spray is needed, 
unlike the soft stream used when watering. Sulphur painted 
on the pipes in sufficient quantity will kill red spider, but this 
must be kept up for a week or so, as it does not affect the eggs 
which hatch out and produce a new crop. The objection to 
sulphur so strong on the steam pipes is that the color of the 
flowers is damaged thereby and a few leaves may fall from 
the bushes, but beyond this, I have never seen any other harm 
from its use in this way. 

A very hot, dry atmosphere in a Rose house is conducive to 
the spread of red spider and the opposite condition has a 
deterrent effect. There are good articles on the market for 
use as a spray against this pest which are worth trying; do 
not condemn them without a careful investigation. 

Thrips 

Thrips are small winged insects less than an eighth of an inch 
long. The havoc wrought among the foliage by them is similar 
to that caused by red spider; their presence is noted by the pale 
mottling of the leaf on which they feed. They also feed upon 
the buds and are partial to American Beauty. All affected buds 
should be cut off and burned, and all dead leaves and rubbish 
kept cleaned away. Fumigate regularly with Nlcofume, or 
similar article, and spray with a good tobacco extract. 



INSECT PESTS 



93 




Rose Silvia 
Sulphur yellow changing to a creamy shading as'flower develops 
Photo courtesy F. R. Pierson Co., Tarrytown, N. Y. 



94 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Frau Karl Druschki 
Pure snow white; long pointed buds; large full flowers 



INSECT PESTS 95 

Another remedy is to heat iron plates almost red hot; the 
house must be closed tightly, as it must always be for any 
fumigating to be effective. Set the plates about 25 feet apart 
and provide two rows if the house is wide. Commence at 
the farther end and place a spoonful of cayenne pepper on 
each plate, working out of the house as quickly as possible. 
Do not inhale the fumes as they may be dangerous if the 
pepper is used freely. This is recommended for American 
Beauty especially, which is so long in perfecting its flowers 
that much damage is sometimes caused by thrips. If in doubt 
as to whether you have spider or thrips, it is important to know 
that the latter causes white spots on the leaves, while the 
former shows the foliage brown and often curled under at the 
edge of the leaves. At first sight, the general appearance is 
the same and the results are similar, in that Roses can be put 
out of commission in one or two weeks when either pest gains 
a foothold. 

Beetles, Grubs and Caterpillars 

Beetles are sometimes troublesome. There is a weevil 
of a dull brown color, with a hard shell and a pointed nose 
with two horns or feelers on the end of it. These weevils eat 
the foliage. They are about one- third of an inch long; they 
feed at night and rest in hiding during the day; they may be 
caught in the early morning easily, as they have no wings. I 
have seen them in two places recently but, as a rule, they are 
not a serious menace. If caught and killed when present in 
small quantities, they are easily controlled. An easy way to 
catch them is to hang pieces of burlap over the bushes, resting 
them on the stakes and letting them lie among and on the 
plants. The weevils will hide in these, and as many as a 
hundred have been caught in one small house at one time 
during the past Summer in Massachusetts. A very light 
jar will dislodge them, and, as they are about the color of the 



96 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

earth, and lie still, shamming death, they are sometimes hard 
to find if they fall to the ground. 

The weevils lay their eggs in the ground. These change to 
white grubs with brown heads and without legs. The grubs 
do their damage to the roots of the plants. Carbon bisulphide 
is used to kill them. Make holes in the ground, where the 
grubs abound, with a pointed stick. These holes may be one 
foot apart or more, according to circumstances. Drop in a 
teaspoonful of the liquid and cover up the hole at once. This 
remedy may also be used to kill all other forms of grub. 

The white grub so common in pasture lands is sometimes 
troublesome among Roses newly planted. If a plant sud- 
denly wilts, dig carefully around it and you may find the grub 
at work, or curled up if at rest, or he may have traveled along 
to the next plant. Kill him and you may save the plant. 

Numerous beetles or chafers attack Roses outdoors. They 
are of various lengths and colors. Hand-picking on cool, 
cloudy days, or in the early morning, or evening is best. If 
the grubs in the ground are so numerous as to be a menace to 
the roots, the ground may be forked up lightly and chickens 
turned in among the bushes; they will eat the grubs with 
avidity. Or, pieces of sod may be placed grass side down 
under the earth where grubs are numerous; these sods will 
attract the grubs and they may be collected and killed. The 
carbon bisulphide remedy may also be used. This will kill 
any and all grubs in the soil without hurting the plants. 

Perhaps the most destructive pest on Roses grown under 
glass, and the hardest to fight, is the leaf roller. These are 
the young of moths or butterflies, which lay their eggs on the 
leaves. They hatch into caterpillars about three-fourths of 
an inch long, which envelope themselves in the leaves, curling 
them up and, where plentiful, which they are liable to become 
if neglected, will ruin a house. They fall to the ground when 
full grown, and enter the soil, where they form a cocoon and 



INSECT PESTS 97 

remain until early Spring, at which time they come forth and 
go through the round of reproduction over again, so that once 
a place is badly infested it is hard to get rid of them. 

The best remedies are, hand-picking of the caterpillars, 
spraying the foliage with poison, and catching the butterflies. 
For spraying the foUage, Paris green, not more than a tea- 
spoonful to ten gallons of water, applied lightly every day for 
a week, has been known to entirely rid a house of these pests. 
Arsenate of lead in about the same proportion (which must be 
kept well stirred while being used) is sometimes used on large 
places, or on any place where there is a steam pump and 
manure tank these can be util zed to advantage for poison 
spraying, and a large house may be covered very cheaply in 
this manner. For catching the moths, a number of pie plates, 
filled with water, may be distributed through a house. In 
the middle of these set a lighted kerosene lamp. The flame 
will attract the moths; they will then fall into the water and 
may be collected and destroyed. The work will have to be 
kept up faithfully, as new crops will hatch out and all cannot 
be killed at one operation. Hydrocyanic acid gas has been 
tried without success, so far, for this pest. During the past 
Summer I was on a large place that had been troubled for 
years with this pest, about April or early May, song 
sparrows flew around inside the houses in large numbers, 
catching the moths and cleaning them out in an almost 
miraculous manner. The trouble practically disappeared 
with the advent of the birds and up to the present time has 
not returned. From later observation on other places I am 
of the opinion that birds entering the houses are of the 
greatest assistance to the grower in fighting these and similar 
pests. 



CHAPTER XIII 

FUNGOUS DISEASES 

AS stated previously, the pests and d'seases of the Rose are 
not so formidable or so dangerous if the proper reme- 
dies or preventives are applied in time. It is when neglect has 
allowed the disease or insect to gain the upper hand that 
serious results follow. Healthy plants are seldom a prey to 
disease or insects, but the surest way to invite failure is 
through a weak, unhealthy plant. The old saying, "Pre- 
vention is better than cure," is as true here as in any other 
case. Disease and death do not come to the Rose plant in a 
day unless some gross breach of fundamental law has been 
committed. A fungus spore may fall on a leaf today, germi- 
nate and pass into the interior of the leaf, where it com- 
mences to form a spawn that thrives on the materials which 
the plant needs for its own use. 

This process of growth varies somewhat with different 
kinds of fungi, but generally takes from one to two weeks 
after infection before the leaf shows any signs of the parasite. 
When the spawn reaches a certain stage, it shows itself by 
different colored patches on the surface of the leaf, generally 
brown or yellow. Later, the fruit of the fungus bursts 
through to the surface, and it is at this time that it is very 
infectious. 

Mildew 

Every person who has seen mildew in this stage knows 
that it is almost impossible to check its ravages. A few spots 
showing in a house today will, if unchecked, in a few days or 

98 



FUNGOUS DISEASES 99 

a week, result in an epidemic which will soon ruin the whole 
crop. It should be remembered that mildew is ever present, 
and only waiting for a favorable opportunity to develop, and 
spread itself. The reason it is so troublesome at times is 
because of neglect in fighting it when it was present in its 
weakest, form and could then have been easily overcome. 
Foliage which is soft, caused by improper cultivation, is an 
easy prey to this disease, while healthy, leathery foliage is 
comparatively immune. 

The best remedies and preventives against mildew inside 
are good, strong, healthy plants, united to cleanliness and 
careful watching as to detail in cultivation. Avoid over- 
watering in dark weather, syringe carefully and not too often 
in the Winter time. Keep a little sulphur painted on the 
pipes all the time when firing, and dust a little dry sulphur on 
the foliage in Midsummer when there is no fire. Let this 
remain on the bushes, with one or two days of hot sun on it, 
before washing it off. Renew the application as soon as 
the bushes are dry, if necessary. When the first spots of 
mildew show in a house, the affected leaves should be 
picked off and burned. If this is persisted in for a few 
days the disease may be kept from spreading, if the 
sulphur remedy is kept up. 

A muggy atmosphere in a house, induced by too much 
damping down and too little air, will cause mildew to spread 
rapidly. When mildew reaches the fruiting stage, the white 
powder is carried by the wind and spread, or it may be carried 
on the clothing from one house to another. At this time it 
may be drowned out by continuous syringings which wash off 
and beat down the spores, destroying a great many of them 
before they can get a chance to alight on a favorable place to 
reproduce themselves. If mildew has been present in the 
Fall, all the leaves that were affected. Which show signs of its 
presence, should be removed and destroyed, or an outbreak 



100 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

is certain in the Spring. When syringing to destroy mildew, 
always work to drive it away from (instead of on to) benches 
that are clean. 

Black Spot 

Black spot is a disease confined to the foliage, and mostly 
troublesome in the Fall and Winter under glass, particularly 
on American Beauty and Richmond Roses. It appears in the 
form of black or purplish spots, sometimes almost circular 
and about one-fourth of an inch in diameter, or the spots will 
be irregular in outline. The blotches are most distinct on the 
upper side of the leaf. Although looking black to the naked 
eye, if examined with a microscope, a delicate white cobweb 
will be seen covering the patches and stretching toward the 
outside. This, in time, develops into minute black specks, 
which is the fruiting stage. It is easily spread around and 
soon defoliates a house. 

The precautions necessary call for similar treatment to 
that prescribed for keeping away mildew as regards air, clean- 
liness, and water. Overwatering, sudden checks, drip in a 
house, and all similar conditions, will induce its appearance. 
As a further preventive, spraying with potassium sulphide, if 
commenced early and continued every ten days^ is good or 
any of the regular copper solutions may be used. When the 
disease appears all affected leaves should be picked off and 
burned. There is little use trying to check it by spraying 
when it becomes established, as the infestation is simulta- 
neous and not progressive. Spraying is done to prevent 
rather than to cure black spot. Pick off all affected leaves 
from the plants and also those which may be on the ground, 
and keep the plants on the dry side until they get a clean 
start. Sprinkle a little air-slaked lime around and under the 
benches, and, with a bellows, apply air-slaked lime mixed 
with an equal quantity of Grape Dust, on the foliage. 



FUNGOUS DISEASES 



101 



Rose Rust 

This form of rust is mostly troublesome on Roses outdoors, 
on hardy hybrid varieties, but none is immune from it. Ail 
affected leaves should be collected in the Fall and burned and 
any affected wood cut away. Before growth commences in 
the Spring, spraying with a copper solution should be started, 
and kept up regularly until the growth has matured. 




Rose Mrs. John Cook 
The ground color is white, the center, when open, a delicate shade 

of pink 



102 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Black Mildew 
This is a disease which, fortunately, is little seen on Roses. 
It causes young, vigorous leaves to suddenly wilt and fall off, 
the young shoots will droop and die back and, if not checked, 
the whole plant will become affected. The spread of this dis- 
ease is very rapid and whole houses are quickly ruined where 
it has gained a foothold. The general appearance of the foli- 
age, when affected, is similar to that caused by a very bad 
dose of red spider. Sulphur, painted on the pipes strong 
enough to leave a deposit of sulphur on the plants, will 
eradicate this disease. 

Rose Canker 

This may be divided into two parts, and we will first con- 
sider this disease as found on plants which have been grafted 
or budded. The cause is an accumulation of food material at 
the junction of stock and cion induced by the unequal ac- 
tivity of the same. If the sap is flowing from the stock faster 
than the cion can use it, or if the opposite is the case, a mori- 
bund or hidebound condition of the tissues results, and canker 
or rupture supervenes. We have a very recent illustration of 
this in the Rose My Maryland and others, which do not al- 
ways succeed well on Manetti. It is simply because some 
kinds do not hitch up well together, to use a homely phrase. 

Another form of canker is found on outdoor Roses, com- 
mencing on wood of the second year's growth, in the form of 
red patches scattered over the bark. Sometimes little injury 
results from this other than the seamy appearance of the bark 
which, later, disappears in warm latitudes. But, where frost is. 
common, the affected parts crack during the Winter. As the 
bark commences to grow over these cracks to heal the wound,, 
the callus is affected with the disease, and large, rough out- 
growths of callus are formed. All diseased branches should be 
removed, and burned; and the spotted parts painted witk 
creosote. 



CHAPTER XIV 

INSECTICIDES AND FUNGICIDES 

np^HERE are a number of proprietary articles on the market 
■*- which are valuable for killing insect pests. When 
these are used the directions should be followed carefully, and 
if in doubt as to the results, as with a new article, try it on a 
small scale at first. Where tobacco stems can be obtained 
cheaply they may be steeped in warm water and the liquid 
used when fresh as a spray. Use it full strength after first 
making a test on a small scale. Stems of tobacco may be 
burned when no flowers are being cut, but this is not recom- 
mended; it Is dirty in its operation, makes a lot of work, and 
often does harm to the flowers. Tobacco dust may be used 
by burning, or by being dusted on the plants; it is a remedy 
for thrips, green fly, etc. 

Kerosene Emulsion 

Is made by first shaving fine one pound of hard soap. Dis- 
solve this in two gallons of boiling water, stir well, and while 
hot add four gallons of kerosene. Churn this well with a 
spray pump until an emulsion is secured; when this takes 
place it will be readily noticed. Dilute this stock mixture, 
when used, as the conditions require, adding at least ten 
parts of water to one part of the emulsion. This is a good 
spray for red spider, thrips, etc., and imparts a leathery 
texture to the foliage which some growers claim is mildew- 
resisting. 

103 



104 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Hellebore 

May be dusted on the flower buds and foliage for thrlps and 
kindred troubles. Apply this on the under side of the foliage 
when damp so it will adhere. 

There are a number of poisons which may be used for 
killing insects, but their use is not often necessary and there- 
fore is not recommended except in extreme cases. Mention 
has been made of Paris green and arsenate of lead in another 
chapter. 

Sulphur' 

Is too well known and commonly used to require much de- 
scription. It is inslouble in water, but fusible with heat. 
When made into a paste and painted on steam pipes it is 
melted at once if the pipes are full of live steam. Large 
deposits of crude sulphur are found in certain parts of the 
world; after different processes of manufacture, which include 
distilling and sublimating, a fine yellow powder like flour is 
the result, which is commonly called Flowers of Sulphur. 
This should never be evaporated over a lamp or an oil stove, 
or over a fire of any description as, if it burns, a gas will be 
created which will take all the foliage off the plants. Place 
the quantity required in a small pail, add water to make a 
paste, and crush the lumps with the hand. Then add enough 
water to make a paint, which is easily applied to the steam 
pipes with a large paint brush. One pipe painted in a narrow 
house is enough, two or three will be required in the wider 
houses. A lump of lime may be added, when mixing, to help 
it stick on the pipes. Some growers make a paste of pure 
linseed oil and sulphur and paint this on the pipes, but this 
is unsightly and creates a bad odor; however, it saves 
sulphur and is lasting. Sulphur continuously applied to 
an iron pipe will eat it away in time sufficiently so as to impair 



INSECTICIDES AND FUNGICIDES 105 

its lasting qualities. It is best to always paint the same pipe 
and then, if damage is done, that particular pipe may in time 
be replaced. Dry sulphur may be dusted on the foliage with 
the bellows and allowed to stay on in the hot sun for a few 
days before being washed off. 

Sulphide of Lime 

May be easily made with a peck of lime and ten pounds of sul- 
phur. Place the lime in a half barrel, sprinkle with water, 
then with sulphur, until all is slaked. Do not use too much 
water at first or it will drown the lime, nor too little or it will 
burn it. Stir well, cover and let boil for two hours. Then 
fill with water, cover and let stand over night. In the morn- 
ing a thin scum will be formed; take this off and throw it 
away. You will then have several gallons of clear, amber 
colored liquid. Bottle this up and use as required; for mil- 
dew on foliage using one part sulphide to thirty parts of 
water. After taking off the first lot of liquid you can fill up 
the barrel with water, stir well and proceed as before, when a 
second lot may be obtained. After this the refuse is good for 
whitewashing the bottoms of benches. 

Sulphate of Copper, or Blue Vitriol 

Is found among veins of copper. It is manufactured on a 
large scale by being gently roasted. During this process 
dioxygen is absorbed from the air, the product is then dis- 
solved in water and the remaining salts crystalized. It is used 
in Paris green, Bordeaux and other mixtures. 

Carbonate of Copper 

Also used in spraying solutions, is the result of slow and 
various processes of refining, and is useful in fungous diseases. 



106 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 



Copper, sulphur, and lime are principally used in the 
various mixtures used for the spraying of trees. Soot is 
valuable on the foliage and on the ground as a preventive of 
fungous diseases, but must not be dusted near flowers, or it 
will disfigure them. 




Rose Dorothy Perkins 



CHAPTER XV 

FERTILIZERS 

Cow Manure the Best 

AS fertilizing material in which to grow Roses there is 
nothing to beat good fresh cow manure, if properly ap- 
plied; when thoroughly incorporated into the soil it is safe to 
use at any time. If used fresh, as a top-dressing, it should 
always have a light covering of loam on top. It is not 
wise to mix lime with cow manure when used for top- 
dressing; too much nitrogen is released at first when 
this is done, then it is either wasted or, if too strong, is 
liable to injure the plants. 

Manure from well-fed dairy cows is best, manure from 
cows which have been fed on brewers' grain has been con- 
demned as poisonous to Roses under glass. Cases have been 
placed on record where Roses were said to have been killed 
by this manure. It is possible, however, that other causes 
may have contributed to the disastrous results obtained by 
some growers. One of our best Rose growers has recently 
used such manure with good results and has never been 
able to trace any injury due to its use. 

Another theory is that manure from cows where sawdust 
or shavings form the major part of the bedding is injurious 
to Roses grown under glass. This notion was exploded by 
tests extending over three years at the experiment station 
of one of our agricultural colleges. 

Good cow manure contains all the essential elements re- 
quired in about the right proportion to produce good Roses, 

107 



108 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

and some large growers who have tried various fertilizers 
have abandoned them all in favor of it. One grower 
went so far as to state that if a man cannot grow Roses 
with plenty of good cow manure at his command he had 
better give the attempt up; while there is a lot of truth 
in this, the statement may be modified somewhat for 
soils differ a great deal. 

Rotted or partly decomposed cow manure is good but has 
lost a portion of its strength. Buy from a large barn to insure 
freshness. One part of good cow manure to five of loam 
will be about right when preparing the compost for the houses. 

BONEMEAL Is A GoOD FERTILIZER 

Bonemeal is used principally as a top-dressing and applied 
several times yearly as occasion requires. It is not necessary 
to mix it with the soil at planting time unless barnyard 
manure cannot be obtained, for good rich soil will carry the 
young stock along until September without any additional 
fertilizers. Bonemeal at forty dollars or less per ton is not 
an expensive article, results cons'dered. It is easy to apply 
and, if kept dry, may be stored and kept indefinitely. 
Scientists claim that it is a complete fertilizer, being rich in 
phosphates, limestone, mineral salts, etc. It is a lasting one 
and, for beds which are to be left for years undisturbed, might 
be used in a rougher form, mixed n the soil. For the quickest 
results bonemeal or flour is applied. It is important to 
obtain fresh ground raw meal if possible. Bones which have 
been subjected to a steaming process have lost a part of their 
value; bones which have been treated with acid to facilitate 
manufacture are condemned as injurious to plant life under 
glass. For Roses which show a tendency to make blind wood 
a light sprinkling of bonemeal will help produce flowers. Use 
ten quarts for every 500 square feet of bench surface. 



FERTILIZERS 



109 




110 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Wood Ashes Rich in Potash 

Wood ashes from good hard wood are especially good for 
Rose growing. They are rich in potash and lime and contain 
a fair amount of phosphoric acid, also a small amount of 
nitrogen. They are a good corrective of acid soils. They 
may be applied rather more frequently than bonemeal under 
general conditions. If the crop is off color wood ashes will 
improve it although the time to apply is when the growth is 
being made. A longer stem will then result from its use. 
For top-dressing use in the same quantity as bonemeal. 

The Value of Soot 

Soot is one of the richest fertilizers known. It contains 
sulphuric, nitric and phosphoric acids, ammonia, potash, lime, 
etc., and may be obtained from the chimneys and boiler flues, 
but the burned out scrapings from boiler tubes are of no value. 
They should all be saved when cleaning out flues, etc., and 
stored away for use. Imported Scotch soot is a good article 
to buy and is a good fungicide as well as fertilizer. For a 
top-dressing, mix soot with about twice its bulk of good fre,sh 
soil which will make less dirt when using it. Spread thinly 
on the bench, using about one bushel to 500 square feet of 
bench surface. For liquid feeding, mix with soft water, 
using one peck of soot to one hundred and twenty gallons 
of water. This may be enclosed in a bag with a string on the 
end and shaken around the tank occasionally, or soot may be 
used as a top-dressing in the same quantity as bonemeal. 
Apply this when the plants are growing. It will greatly 
increase the vigor of stems and foliage and improve the color 
of the flowers. As a preventive of fungous diseases soot has 
been found valuable under glass and outdoors. Dust over 
the foliage the same as sulphur. If used when the growth is 



FERTILIZERS 111 

being made, it can be well washed off before the flowers 
develop. 

The Uses of Lime 

Lime is a fertilizer and sweetener of the soil that has 
been used for ages, not so much as a direct fertilizer 
but as an agent by which insoluble potash is changed 
into available food. It Is possible to use too much 
lime, for then the soil is depleted of potash and clay, 
soils may be cemented by its exclusive use. Light, sandy 
soils, as well as clay soils, are benefited by the use of 
lime. It should always be applied on top of the ground 
and lightly raked in as it will work downward. 

Agricultural, or land lime, can be bought fairly cheap and 
is better to use than air-slaked lime from the fact that the 
action of the carbonic acid of the air converts the lime into 
carbonate of lime (the form in which it existed before being 
burned). Hydrated lime, sold as land lime, is fresh burned 
lime slaked and pulverized by machinery. Less of this is 
required than when air-slaked lime is used. Numerous 
Government experiment stations have demonstrated the 
value of lime, and its value to florists has been clearly proved. 
A light sprinkling on top of the bench is all that is required. 
An easy test to determine whether lime is required is to take 
two tablespoonfuls of soil. Place them in two glasses, fill the 
glasses two-thirds full of water, add to one of the glasses three 
teaspoonfuls of dilute ammonia water (which may be obtained 
from any druggist), stir each glass with a separate spoon; if 
the one to which the ammonia water was not added shows an 
almost colorless liquid, while the one which did receive the 
ammonia shows a dark brown or black liquid, it may 
be concluded that lime would be of benefit, for the soil is 
more or less sour. 



112 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Perhaps a more common test is to place a few tablespoon- 
fuls of soil in a glass and moisten with water to form a thick 
paste. A strip of blue litmus paper is then introduced; avoid 
touching with the fingers the end that is placed in the soil. 
The soil is parted with a knife and then pressed firmly about 
the paper. Having allowed it to stand at least half an hour, 
carefully remove the soil from around the paper. Then re- 
move the paper and carefully rinse by dipping in water to a 
point just below where the soil reached. Do not dip or wet 
the paper above this point or the blue may be washed down 
to the lower part. If the blue has disappeared from the part 
where the soil was in contact and a red color has taken its 
place the soil will be benefited by lime for Rose growing. 

Other Fertilizing Material 

Sheep manure is often used where cow manure cannot 
easily be obtained. It may be bought in bags, pulver- 
ized, and, applied fairly thick, is valuable. It is much 
more bulky than the articles previously mentioned and 
can be spread on four times as thick as bonemeal and 
similar articles. 

Nitrate of soda will promote a rapid and soft growth. It 
should be used with care until you are thoroughly acquainted 
with it. For liquid feeding use a small amount and note the 
results before going too far. If for a top-dressing crush out all 
the lumps until it is very fine and mix with fresh, rather dry 
loam and spread thinly on the benches. 

Sulphate of ammonia is used in much the same way as the 
nitrate of soda. Very quick results may be looked for when 
this is used. It will impart a very rich, dark color to the 
foliage of Roses and other plants. This and the nitrate may 
be bought in lots of anywhere between five pounds or as many 
tons. 



FERTILIZERS 



113 



There are other articles which may be used, but these 
cover the requirements of the average grower. They are all 
very valuable when used correctly and applied in the proper 
season, but, if improperly applied, serious results will follow. 

The beginner had better pin his faith on good barnyard 
manure which contains all the essential elements generally 
needed and in about the right proportion for the plant's 
requirements. 




CHAPTER XVI 

THE AMERICAN BEAUTY ROSE 

Its Culture 

GOOD American Beauty Roses are being grown in both 
even span and three-quarter span houses. A medium 
heavy loam, taken from good pasture land, and mixed with 
one-fifth cow manure, is best for their needs. They may be 
grown in the same house with other Roses ordinarily grown, 
but require more headroom than other kinds. 

Hints on Propagation 

When cutting off wood for propagation (and these Roses 
are grown on their own roots), pass by those plants whose 
foliage is at all off color, as these will be likely to lose their 
leaves before making roots, and, in such cases, are never so 
good for future use. Avoid also the extra strong growth 
which often runs to wood rather than the production of 
flowers. Select all the wood possible from plants which pro- 
duce the most good flowers. Choose well ripened, short 
jointed wood, trying to select them all in the same degree of 
hardness that they may all root together and make an even 
lot. Then they may be all potted up quickly, and the re- 
sults, of course, will be much better than when a batch is 
straggling along for weeks, as in this case some of them will 
lose their leaves. 

The cuttings should have at least two eyes, and should not 
be crowded in the bench so that the leaves interlap or they 

114 



AMERICAN BEAUTY ROSE 



115 




Rose American Beauty 



116 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose American Beauty 
Showing habit and length of stem 



AMERICAN BEAUTY ROSE 117 

will not dry after the frequent waterings or sprayings. Fun- 
gous diseases are likely to develop in this case. Avoid over- 
watering. Shade during the first two weeks, and then grad- 
ually expose to the full sunlight. 

For early planting in May, cuttings should be rooted in 
December. January stock will be early enough for June 
planting. It is not profitable to plant American Beauty 
Roses from late rooted cuttings. The plants may be set out 
in solid beds or on benches in the same depth of loam as is 
used for Hybrid Teas, and they may be planted about the 
same distance apart. From sixteen to eighteen inches apart 
is a good distance, although some growers do not allow them 
quite so much room, planting two inches closer. This refers 
to the distance apart in the row. The number of rows in a 
bench is the same as for Killarney and similar varieties. It 
is not wise to plant anything but the best stock for the 
results will be unsatisfactory if you do. 

After planting in the early Summer, when evaporation is 
so rapid, frequent damping down and spraying will be re- 
quired. As soon as the plants get established this should be 
reduced as much as possible or a very soft growth will be 
induced which will make trouble later on, and will make the 
stock an easy prey to diseases of all kinds. One good syring- 
ing daily, after the first three weeks or so, will be enough. 
Early stock, flowering in the Summer months, may have a 
fair top-dressing of rich manure and will require liberal 
watering at the roots. 

To avoid any check to the plants it is best to pinch out a 
part of the buds and only allow the best to mature on the 
young stock. After cutting away wood care has to be used in 
watering until the plants are again in active growth. Toward 
Fall great care must be taken in the use of water both on the 
foliage and at the root, or black spot will be likely to gain a 
foothold. Aim to have the foliage dry by evening. Keep 



118 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

the benches and walks clean and free from rubbish, and the 
walks free from standing water, but not dust dry. Do not 
allow the beds to get dust dry before watering, but when they 
are on the dry side give a moderate amount of liquid manure 
during the growing season, alternating this occasionally with 
clear water as the plants require. Avoid any conditions in the 
house which will cause drip. Keep a little steam and air on 
every night and stormy day, and spray with a copper solution 
about every ten days if there is any tendency to black spot; 
if this latter shows up it must be faithfully picked off and 
burned. 

Old plants may be cut back and replanted after being dried 
off a little. Replant in good new loam, give a fair watering, 
and then spray the tops occasionally to cause the young shoots 
to break well and come strong. Then, as the plants advance 
and take hold of the soil, more water at the root may be given. 
Old plants may be dried off a couple of weeks and then pruned 
and started up the same as the Hybrid Teas. Yellowing of 
the foliage is the common result of this operation caused by 
overwatering. A good plan is to water the beds after scraping 
off the old loam. Then, after the top-dressing, no more water 
is given, as the moisture received is sufficient to keep them 
going until they are well started into growth. Then they 
may receive a careful watering. 

American Beauty Roses, grafted on Manetti, are the best 
for carrying over and starting up in this way, is the report of 
Mr. Alexander Montgomery, as there is not the same danger 
of yellowing, but otherwise there is no advantage in grafting 
this variety. 

The Winter treatment is much the same as for other 
Roses; 60° to 62° is a good night temperature. So long as 
the tops look red you can be reasonably sure that you will 
get a flower. In the vicinity of Philadelphia they say that 
if the buds are formed by Thanksgiving they will be in time 



AMERICAN BEAUTY ROSE 



119 



for Christmas. In the neighborhood of Boston it takes about 
ten days longer. About six weeks is required, generally 
speaking. No two places or seasons will be exactly alike. 
Careful watch must be kept for thrips. If this gets a foot- 
hold, it will very soon do a lot of damage. Tobacco stems, 
burned often enough, will destroy it and will not hurt the 
plants, but care must be used in fumigating when the buds 
show color or the flowers will be damaged. Up to that time 
tobacco smoke, reasonably applied, will not hurt them. 




Double Rosa rugosa, or Rosa rugosa fl. pl. 



CHAPTER XVII 

Bunch Roses 

THE culture of this class of Roses varies but little from 
that of the general run of greenhouse grown kinds. As 
a rule they are somewhat dwarfer and do not require so much 
headroom; neither do they require much tying, nor so much 
disbudding. 

They may be planted at the same time as the others, and 
cultural conditions in regard to watering, temperature, 
feeding, drying off, restarting, etc., are about the same, as 
is also the practice of pinching to regulate the crop. A 
few plants of these varieties will be found very profitable, 
either for the grower who retails his own product, or for 
the wholesaler. As a rule, perhaps from lo to 2,0 per 
cent of the area to be planted with Roses might be devoted 
to them. 

The most popular and important of the so-called bunch 

Roses is Cecile Brunner, which might occupy about half of 

the space to be devoted to these kinds, with the others divided 

in about equal proportions. Brunner or "Sweetheart" needs 

practically no disbudding. The flowers are produced in 

clusters and if well grown, and if care is exercised in cutting, 

each bud or small group of buds may be cut with a stem from 

six to twelve inches in length. These are cut when of good 

size and well colored before they expand, always cutting 

without waste and leaving as many buds on the cluster as 

possible for future cutting until all have been cut from that 

shoot or branch. These plants will produce a number of 

vigorous shoots, each with a large number of buds, and on 
120 



BUNCH ROSES 121 

these shoots it is often advisable to pinch out some of the 
buds to allow the remainder to develop to better advantage 
and to assure all a reasonable length of stem. 

The buds of this variety are tied in bunches of twenty-five, 
and are marketed in this way. There is really less work 
attached to growing them than to the culture of the larger 
kinds, and they are easier to handle and market, especially if 
tied in bunches as they are cut. This variety is very pretty 
either in the bud or when fully open, and is a splendid 
keeper and an easy, vigorous grower of dwarf habit. 

There are several good singles that are profitable to grow. 
These may be cut and tied in bunches for market like the 
variety just discussed, or they may be laid out on papers 
twenty-five at a time in the same way that the larger kinds 
are handled. 

Irish Fireflame is a vigorous grower and produces flowers 
freely. It is a little subject to mildew but no more so than 
many other kinds. It needs disbudding on the strong shoots, 
and care must be used in cutting as the buds open quickly 
in warm weather. These singles have only five petals and 
while they are very pretty when open, they must be cut and 
shipped for the wholesale market when in the bud. It is not 
necessary, however, to cut them more than twice daily, even 
in warm weather, if the work is carefully done. 

Old Gold is another variety of a pleasing color. It is a 
vigorous grower, doing well either on its own roots or grafted 
and should be grown where a good single is wanted. 

Other varieties, of which a list may be obtained from the 
various dealers in young stock, may appeal to different culti- 
vators. All of them will be more or less acceptable to their 
customers and consequently more or less profitable. 

It is always good policy to order necessary stock in this 
line early to avoid delay and disappointment. But if you 
can grow your own, so much the better. 



122 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Cecil Brunner (also known as Su'eetheart, Mignon, etc.) 
A dainty miniature Rose, light pink in color 



ROSES l23 

Cuttings of the hardy varieties may be taken in the 
Summer months, inserted in pans or flats of sand and placed 
in a gentle hotbed, where kept close and shaded from the 
strong sun they will root quickly. They should be potted 
as soon as rooted and with careful treatment will make nice 
plants for the following year. Or a hotbed may be prepared 
and covered with a little good loam with several inches of 
clean sand on top. Firm this down carefully and insert 
the cuttings in it not too thickly. If desired they may be 
left here until late Fall, or even over Winter, as they will root 
down into the soil below. 

Propagation of the greenhouse varieties may commence 
in early Fall when there is generally plenty of wood available. 
The cuttings may be put in the propagating bench, which is 
often empty at this time, and will make large plants for 
benching early in the Spring. Any stock left over from the 
Spring planting may be carried over through the Summer 
in 31^-inch or 4-inch pots in a cool, airy house, or out in 
frames. If kept in frames during the Summer, take the 
plants back into a cool house before Winter and carry them 
along rather dry until early in the new year, when they may 
be repotted and grown along. They can then be planted out 
in the first available house that becomes vacant, where they 
will soon give a good account of themselves. 

While speaking of young stock for benching in the 
Summer I should like to mention the method of handling it 
which was originated by Mr. W. H. Elliott of Brighton, 
Mass., and Madbury, N. H., and practiced by him for a 
number of years. Instead of growing the plants through 
the Spring months in small pots they are planted out as soon 
as they are ready after the first potting, in the following 
manner: As many benches in the Rose house as are required 
are cleared out and a very shallow layer of well prepared 
Rose soil is spread in them; not more than enough to cover 



124 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

the ball from a small pot should be used. The young plants 
are then set almost on the bottom of the bench, only enough 
soil being used to cover the roots as just directed above. 
The plants are set out about six inches apart each way, 
although this distance may be varied somewhat, according to 
conditions; the size of the young plants and the length of 
time they are to remain here will govern this to a large extent. 

These plants may be watered freely without danger of 
souring the soil. At the same time, although they should 
never be allowed to become too dry, there is not the same 
danger of their suffering in case they do become rather dry 
at times, as when they are dried up in small pots. All growers 
know what careful watching plants in pots require during 
the hot Spring months and how frequently those in the out- 
side rows of pots dry out. 

With proper pinching, large, bushy plants can be built 
up in a few months in this manner and one bench will hold 
enough plants to fill from six to ten benches when trans- 
ferred to their permanent quarters. The best time to move 
them is when the growth is a little ripe and before they start 
out with soft new growth. Keep them just a little on the 
dry side before transplanting them, but do not attempt to 
move them when the soil is so dry that it will not hold to- 
gether in good shape. A good watering the day before they 
are moved will probably put them in about the right condi- 
tion for the operation. When ready to move the plants take 
a large butcher knife and draw lines midway between them, 
both lengthwise and crosswise of the bench. The plants may 
then be lifted out with perfect squares of earth about their 
roots and be at once planted in their permanent quarters. 
If the work is carefully done they will suffer no check and 
will commence to make new roots and to grow at once. Such 
plants will be much larger at the start than anything you 
could produce in a small pot and the roots will be in a healthier 



BUNCH ROSES 125 

and more active, working condition, and not matted or 
cramped up, as they become in small pots. 

To this same gentleman belongs the credit of originating 
the field method of preparing loam for filling Rose houses. 
Mr. Elliott has proceeded for many years in about this 
manner: The area to be used is plowed in the Fall and the 
top soil carted on to a level, well drained space near the 
houses, reserved for this purpose. If the ground slopes 
slightly to the south so much the better. Here the new loam 
is dumped, leveled off to about one foot in depth and left out 
over Winter. In the early Spring a good coating of manure 
is spread on the soil, care being taken to keep it far enough 
from the outside edge so that it will not be thrown off in the 
course of the subsequent harrowing. A pair of horses and 
a disc harrow is then put on and run over the piece back and 
forth until soil and manure are thoroughly cut up and mixed. 
A plow is also run through the piece to turn it over, then a 
leveling board similar in action to a road scraper is used to 
level it, after which it is again gone over with the disc harrow. 

When thoroughly leveled, a good coating of bonemeal is 
spread on and worked in with the harrow. Then the loam is 
left to bake in the sun until wanted when it is carted to the 
houses in a sweet, fresh condition. 

It is safe to assert that one man with a good pair of horses 
will prepare as much loam in a day in this manner as two men 
would in a week by chopping down and turning over a loam 
pile in the ordinary manner. 

The man with ability to adapt himself to changing con- 
ditions and to work out new methods in saving labor or in 
producing better stock than his neighbor, is the most likely 
to be successful in Rose growing, as in every other line of 
endeavor. 




Climbing Rose Lucile 
Very vigorous and free; bright carnation pink 

Photo courtesy M. H. Walsh, Woods Hole, Mass. 
126 



CHAPTER XVIII 

RAMBLER ROSES 

THIS class of Roses has come into great prominence dur- 
ing the past few years, and, thanks chiefly to American 
hybridizers, we now have a large and varied collection of good 
kinds, suitable for outdoor planting, and good also to force 
for Easter and Spring sales. In addition, we have the dwarf, 
or Baby Ramblers, which are excellent for bedding outdoors. 
These are very desirable and will flower all Summer. Among 
the best of these are crimson, pink, and white. Baby 
Dorothy is a good pink. One of the newer ones, Jessie, 
originated by Merryweather of Southwell, England, is de- 
scribed as one of the best, commencing to bloom in June and 
continuing until killed by frost. These grow to a height of 
about i]/2 feet, branch freely, have bright, glossy green 
foliage and flowers of a bright cherry crimson color, borne in 
large clusters. These dwarf Ramblers are a decided acquisi- 
tion, and add charm and variety to any Rose or flower 
garden. 

Among the Climbers, or Ramblers proper, some of the 
best are, first, the original and reliable Crimson Rambler; 
Philadelphia Rambler, similar to the former, with brighter 
and larger flowers; Dorothy Perkins, a beautiful shell pink; 
White Dorothy, a sport from the pink; Debutante, light pink; 
Hiawatha, crimson; Lady Gay, cherry pink; Yellow Rambler; 
American Pillar, a valuable Climber with s'ngle rosy pink 
flowers, and a kind possessing a vigorous constitution. This 
Rose has been used successfully on embankments and, in 
addition to other good qualities, has splendid foliage and 
grows freely. 

127 



128 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 












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Climbing Rose Hiawatha 
Deep crimson shaded white at base of petals 
Photo courtesy M. H. Walsh, Woods Hole, Mass. 



RAMBLER ROSES 129 

Silver Moon, clear white; Excelsa (Red Dorothy Perkins) ; 
Climbing American Beauty; Pink Roamer, rich pink single 
flowers with white centers; Gardenia, a very vigorous grow- 
ing bright yellow, and Tausendschon, a soft pink color which 
has proved invaluable as an outdoor Rose, or as a pot-grown 
plant. 

Stock of these Roses may be bought from any nursery- 
man or may be raised at home. 

To gain time when propagating Ramblers, cuttings of half 
ripened wood may be inserted in the late Summer in a hotbed, 
potted up as soon as rooted and grown on in the greenhouse. 
These will have quite a start over the Spring rooted stock. 
The Spring stock may be obtained by taking cuttings from 
plants started into growth inside after New Year. Some 
growers of forced Ramblers allow one or two strong canes 
to start and, by pinching these, a number of good cuttings 
may be obtained. These are rooted in the sand and grown 
on in the usual manner. They may be planted outdoors in 
good ground and should be carefully cultivated to get the 
best results. This Spring rooted stock will not make very 
large plants the first year. The Fall rooted would have the 
advantage here, but either kind could be used as small stock 
for forcing. 

By leaving the plants out two or three years, large plants 
may be obtained. In this case it would be wise the first 
year or two to shorten back the canes to produce a bushy 
growth; the last year the long growths should be tied up to 
stakes, or to a fence, to allow the wood to thoroughly ripen, 
which is essential to success in forcing Ramblers. Plants dug 
up from the field in the Fall have been potted and forced with 
good results, cases being on record where the percentage 
of failure with this stock was very small. A great deal de- 
pends, however, on where the stock is obtained and the 
condition it is in when received. It is generally agreed that 



130 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

pot grown stock is the most reliable and gives the best results. 
In this case stock may be dug from the field and potted in the 
Spring, grown on inside for a time and may then be plunged 
outside in coal ashes. They should be well fed and watered 
all through the growing season and receive all the sun and air 
possible. Withhold water gradually in the Fall and, if heavy 
rains occur, lay the pots on their sides to prevent the plants 
becoming too wet and starting into growth. When wintry 
weather occurs the plants may be stored in a frame until time 
to force. This will be about the first of January, depending 
somewhat on the date of Easter, which is the time when large 
quantities are disposed of. 

It takes about ten or twelve weeks from the time they are 
brought inside until they are ready for sale, depending on how 
they are ripened, established, the heat applied, etc. As soon 
as the plants are brought inside the long canes should be tied 
into the shape desired. Wire stakes are very useful for this 
purpose as they may be bent into any shape and, when 
covered with foliage and flowers are not noticeable. 

The illustration on opposite page shows the methods 
of training employed by an English grower which vary little 
from our own. The temperature at first should not exceed 
45° at night. Water should be applied moderately at first; 
after the balls are once wet to the bottom, syringe the plants 
several times daily to help start the buds. The object is to 
get all the buds started and all to flower, or the fine eff"ect of 
the trained specimen is lost. After two or three weeks the 
temperature may be raised to 50°. Later, when the buds 
are formed, to 55°, and finally to 60°. 

It should be remebered that a little extra heat may be 
applied to hurry them along if late, or they may be slightly 
retarded if too early. The ones grown in moderate heat 
will be the best and will keep the longest. No forcing should 
be attempted until after the buds are formed. 



RAMBLER ROSES 



131 




Methods of training Rambler Roses 

Photo courtesy Thos. Rochford & Sons, Broxbourne, England 



The treatment during the forcing period is much the same 
as that required by other Roses^ Air carefully; feed and 
water freely during the growing period; harden off gradually 
before sending to market, but never leave in a dark, draughty 
place. It will take one month from the time the flower is 
formed until its development. 

The Baby, or Dwarf Ramblers, may be forced in the 
same way as the others. As these flower all Summer, and 



132 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Baby Rambler in Pot 

A gem for forcing or bedding. Try a bed instead of ueing 

tender plants 



RAMBLER ROSES 



133 




Basket Trained Rose Plant 



may be sold at almost any time they do not require such 
careful timing as the Climbers to get into flower. Houses 
that are not quite the best, work in well for these Roses the 
first six weeks, when they may be moved into the flowering 
house. Most plant growers have a number of small houses 
which allow of constant changing around of stock as some 
have to be hurried and others held back. 



134 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 



The best demand for large forced Ramblers is at Easter. 
For the smaller and cheaper plants there is an excellent sale 
all through the Spring months and especially for Memorial 
Day. 

All plants left over from Spring sales may be grown 
on through the Summer and will make good plants for the 
following year. Unless they were potted in early Spring they 
will probably need repotting in good rich loam. This may 
be done right after flowering and the plants grown on in the 
usual manner. Or these same plants may be used for out- 
door planting with the advantage of being safely transferred 
and planted at any time during the Summer. Besides the 
varieties mentioned at the commencement of this chapter, 
there are a number of others that are good, and new kinds are 
constantly appearing, making this class a most interesting 
and useful one. 




RAMBLER ROSES 




Specimen Wichuriana Hybrid 

Photo courtesy M. H. Walsh, Woods Hole, Mass. 



CHAPTER XIX 

ROSES OUTDOORS 

IN choosing a location for Roses outside an exposure from 
southeast to southwest makes an ideal garden. The 
early morning sun is of greatest value as most of their growth 
outdoors is made before 8 a.m. every day. Shelter from the 
north and east or west, whichever way strong winds may 
blow from, according to location, is necessary for the best 
results; the main point is that the plants should be exposed 
to the full sunlight. 

The ground should be rich and well drained. If the soil 
is of a cold and clayey nature, plenty of good horse manure, 
well worked in, will be of advantage. For ordinary soil 
nothing is better than cow manure. The land should be well 
cultivated and in good condition to receive any crop before 
planting Roses. These plants are gross feeders and, after 
they become established, will be benefited by applications 
of manure water in the growing and flowering season, and by 
top-dressings of manure. Hoeing and cultivating will have to 
be attended to, and all weeds and insect pests kept down. 
These conditions observed, an abundance of good blooms 
will be the result. It is remarkable how Roses will exist and 
blossom even where neglected, but when proper care is given 
there is no flower that responds more readily to the attention 
given it. 

There is no secret in the growing of good Roses. The 
proper location, rich, well drained and well cultivated soil, 
and safeguarding against fungus and insect pests, will all con- 
tribute to the health and vigor of the plants. 

136 



ROSES OUTDOORS 



137 




W 



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138 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Tea Rose White Maman Cochet 
A splendid garden Rose. Free habit and good blooming qualities 



ROSES OUTDOORS 139 

Roses may be planted in rows three feet apart and 
eighteen inches apart in the row. If cramped for room 
they may be set closer, but should never be planted so 
close together as to interfere with cultivating or with their 
proper development. As early in the Spring as the 
ground can be worked is the best time to plant, although 
the plants may be set out up to the first of June with fair 
success. I once saw a lot of imported stock delayed in 
shipment, planted out the last week in May which, thanks 
to a cold June, did remarkably well. 

For late planting, plants from pots or benches can be 
relied upon for good results, or plants may be set out in 
the Fall. 

Roses on their own roots may be planted just below the 
surface of the ground, but grafted Roses should be set out 
deep enough so that the point of union between the stock and 
the graft or cion will be two or three inches below the surface 
of the soil. Hybrid Teas from under glass may be planted out 
at any time in the Summer. These delight in a warm, dry soil, 
unlike the heavier and moister soil required for Hybrid Per- 
petuals. If the stock taken from the benches is cut down 
halfway, or even lower, it will break strongly and give good 
flowers during the Summer. Never allow any stock to lie 
around so that the roots become dry before being planted; 
if at all dry, soak the roots and prune off any broken ones 
before planting. Tread down firmly, after planting, and 
cultivate to keep the ground from caking on the top. The 
Spring work will consist of, first. 

Pruning 

This is generally done in the Spring in latitudes where the 
plants are dormant all Winter. The weak growing varieties 
should be pruned to three or four eyes from the ground, but 



14U COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

the strong growing kinds may be left twice that length. The 
harder they are cut back the more vigorous will be the new 
wood and the larger the flowers on the Hybrid Perpetuals. 

Varieties like the Banksia, Crimson Rambler, and others 
which flower from the shoots produced the previous year, re- 
quire little pruning. They may require to be shortened back 
a little, but, if cut down, they will produce an abundance of 
strong new wood but no flowers. Any pruning necessary on 
these is best done right after flowering. 

The Hybrid Teas may be pruned about the same as the 
hardy garden kinds outdoors, but not cut back so hard. 

If any strong shoots come up from below the graft they 
must be rooted out or they will in time destroy the upper part 
of the plant. This is the wild stock and grows strong, is 
rather red when young, has more thorns than the other kinds 
as a rule, and has seven leafstalks, while the cultivated kinds 
have mostly five, although under glass, growing very luxur- 
iantly, we have seen them with seven and also with nine leaf 
stalks. In any case they will look foreign to the rest of the 
plant. If they come from below the graft there is no doubt 
of what they are. 

Such varieties as Bridesmaid, Richmond, Madame Abel 
Chatenay, Killarney, and others, have been safely wintered 
outdoors in the New England States. Wm. R. Smith, My 
Maryland, Wellesley and Mme. Caroline Testout do splen- 
didly out of doors. In fact nearly all the Hybrid Teas may 
be grown outdoors. (It is impossible to guarantee results 
in such a large country as this with such a varying climate, but 
all are worthy of a trial.) Killarney mildews badly outdoors 
in some places. 

When pruning outdoor Roses keep a sharp lookout for any 
disease; and if any is found at once apply the remedy. Pick 
up or rake off" all clippings and take off" any Winter covering 
and commence the stirring of the soil as soon as needed. 



ROSES OUTDOORS 



141 




142 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Climbing American Beauty 
No garden is complete without this splendid variety 
Originators, Hoopes, Bro. & Thomas Co., West Chester, Pa. 



ROSES OUTDOORS 143 

Spraying Roses Outdoors 

Spray for insect pests and fungous diseases, if any have 
been noted. Whale oil soap, or Ivory soap, one pound to 
eight gallons of water, makes a good spray for green fly, or it 
may be dislodged with the hose if the water pressure is great 
enough. For the leaf roller, dust hellebore on when the 
foliage is damp, and, if washed off by rain, repeat the applica- 
tion; or spray with Paris green, using a weak solution when 
the foliage is young and tender. Do not use more than one 
teaspoonful for eight gallons of water. For thrips dust 
hellebore on the under side of the leaves, when wet; these 
pests attack the plants in a hot, dry time and a thorough 
drenching of the plants and soil will help drive them away. 
Hand-picking will have to be resorted to for rose bugs and 
grubs of all descriptions. For mildew dust with sulphur, and 
spray in the Spring and Fall with the sulphide of lime de- 
scribed in Chapter XII. 

Always make a test of all spraying materials on a few 
bushes if the exact strength is not known. For rust, the 
spraying may be done with a copper solution. 

To obtain good flowers, disbudding must be practiced as 
soon as the buds are large enough to be taken off. If the 
weather is hot and dry at this time, the crop will be much 
improved by mulching and copious watering with both clear 
and manure water. If no mulch is applied, stir the ground 
frequently so as not to allow it to cake. If any suckers 
appear on the grafted or budded plants they should be rooted 
out. 

Other Pointers 

In the Fall, all dead leaves and rubbish should be cleaned 
up and burned. In this way a lot of trouble will be saved the 



144 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

following Spring. Climbing Roses, or tall growing varieties, 
should be securely fastened so that they will not get broken 
during the Winter storms. 

During the first half of November the soil may be hilled 
or drawn up to the plants to the height of eight or nine inches 
and the space between the rows filled in with manure. This 
will protect enough of the lower part of the plant so that if 
the tops Winter-kill, there will be enough remaining to pro- 
duce strong breaks. 

Tender varieties should have pine needles or coarse hay 
placed among the bushes which may, in turn, be covered by 
some evergreen branches to keep away strong winds or sun. 
The strong sun in early Spring, combined with zero nights, is 
harmful to Roses. 

If field mice are abundant, they sometimes work havoc 
with the bark underneath the covering. For this reason earth 
alone is the best and often is all the covering required. Pine 
needles make the next best covering for the same reason. 

After removing the covering in the Spring, the earth may 
be levelled down in the rows, leaving it a little higher than 
it was the previous season. 

A bed of Roses will produce good flowers for a lifetime if 
it is closely pruned every year, and if the plants are dug up 
and root pruned every seven or eight years. 

Climbing Roses 

These varieties have within the past ten years, made great 
strides in popularity. Since the advent of the Crimson 
Rambler and its successors, these have come into the front 
rank and they are worthy of the position that they hold. 
These may be used in a variety of places and do well even on 
north walls, but they are prone to mildew if planted in 



ROSES OUTDOORS 145 

draughty or shady places as we often see them on the sides 
of houses. 

These flower about the first week in July, thereby pro- 
longing the season several weeks, and very fine effects may be 
produced with them. Their culture is the same as for 
ordinary garden Roses, except that they require little pruning. 
There are a nurnber of these Roses worthy of a place in every 
garden and, by consulting the growers' catalogues, a variety 
of colors will be found. 

In the Hybrid Teas 

Wellesley is said to excel outdoors. There are almost a 
score of good ones. In addition to the ones previously men- 
tioned in this chapter we have La France, Caroline Testout, 
Maman Cochet, white and pink, Kaiserin Augusta Victoria, 
President Carnot and others. 



CHAPTER XX 

COST OF EQUIPMENT AND RETURNS 

Cost of Building and Equipment 

THE cost of commencing as a wholesale or retail Rose 
grower depends somewhat on circumstances and style 
of houses. Good, serviceable houses of the proper type will 
probably cost, when planted and completely installed, in the 
neighborhood of ^10,000.00 for every 10,000 square feet of 
ground enclosed. 

Allowing about one-third of this enclosure for walks, we 
have ground left which would hold probably 6000 plants, de- 
pending somewhat on how the house was laid out and how 
close together the plants were set. If these plants produce 
an income of one dollar and a half each per year, they are doing 
well. A great many growers get less, but this amount and 
more has been obtained. One grower, through a careful 
system of pinching his plants, and manipulation of his crops 
to bring in a steady supply of flowers at all times, and 
especially for the holidays, added seventeen thousand dollars 
to his sales in one year. 

A Rose plant, doing well, will produce about fifty flowers 
per year Some growers get an average of four cents per 
flower the year round. I have on record the cut of one estab- 
lishment where My Maryland produced, from young stock 
planted in May, 1909, an average cut of sixty-five flowers per 
plant for the twelve months ending July first, 19 10. The cut 
in December and January, combined, amounted to nearly 

146 



COST OF EQUIPMENT AND RETURNS 147 

four thousand flowers. The Killarneys will average as well 
for the year and may be more easily manipulated by the small 
grower, so that they will produce a larger percentage in the 
Winter time. Hadley, as mentioned in another chapter 
holds the record so far as I am informed, with an earning 
capacity of between five and six dollars per plant per year. 
It seems unnecessary to mention varieties. There are at 
least a dozen that do better with some growers than they 
do with others. 

The cost of operating also depends largely on the owner or 
manager. Labor and coal are the principal items. After you 
have figured these, you must add a reasonable amount for 
incidentals and other expenses, all of which multiply at an 
alarming rate. Taxes, interest, depreciation of stock, etc., all 
have to be considered before you can count the profit. But, 
after all, Rose growing is a profitable business if it is properly 
carried on. If you cannot do it right it is the wisest plan to 
let it alone. 

In addition to the revenue derived from the ordinary sales 
of cut flowers and plants (and the old plants from the benches 
may sometimes be turned into a little cash at replanting time), 
there is the possibility of a plant sporting on your place which, 
if it is an improvement over existing varieties, may prove of 
value. In this case, watch it carefully for a couple of years to 
make sure it is a good thing. Propagate a good stock 
from the best wood and sell it as soon as you can get 
a good off'er from a reliable firm unless you have the 
facilities for growing and shipping young plants yourself. 
You will probably be better off in the end if you pursue 
the former method, for the cost of sending out a new 
variety is considerable. In any event, avoid keeping a 
sport too long as there is always the possibility of another 
grower having one as good as yours and getting it on 
the market ahead of you. 



148 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Poisoning with Fertilizers and Insecticides 

There has often been a cry raised that growers are using 
dangerous chemicals on their bushes as fertihzers or insecti- 
cides. People handling flowers in the markets and in stores 
have had badly swollen hands and arms at times and the 
growers have been blamed for it. I never believed that this 
was right and have asked several doctors who quite agree 
with me. Presumably healthy people have died before 
through the prick of a pin, the scratch from a nail, and from 
other apparently insignificant causes. 

The trouble with Roses is that the thorns prick and break 
the skin. If, at this time, there is any dirt or impurity on a 
person's hand, as is often the case when engaged in his work, 
these impurities enter the blood, and serious results may 
shortly follow, especially at certain seasons of the year when 
particular subjects may be more readily inoculated. I do 
not know of a single case where the trouble can be traced to 
anything the grower used, no matter what has been said to 
the contrary. Growers are very careful in this matter and 
poisonous compounds are used but little under glass in general 
practice. 



CHAPTER XXI 

NOTES ON CUTTING, MARKETING, EXHIBIT- 
ING, ETC. 

Cutting 

IN the hot Summer months Roses should be cut early in the 
morning and placed at once in fresh, cool water, in a cool, 
dark room. After remaining there for a reasonable length of 
time they may be assorted into the different grades required 
and are ready for shipment to market. The sooner they are 
sold after being properly cooled off, the better will be the re- 
sults. Twenty-four hours is as long as they should be kept, 
although they may be and often are kept much longer, for 
various reasons. 

In the Winter time it is best to allow the flowers to re- 
main longer on the plants before being cut as they develop 
very s'owly, especially in cold, dark weather. They make a 
much better appearance when being sold if they are not cut 
too soon in Winter, but as the hot Spring and Summer sun 
advances it is necessary to cut early in the morning and 
again carefully in the late afternoon. 

Grading 

When grading, care must be taken to assort carefully and 
to put nothing but the best in the higher grades. Fine foliage, 
long stems, and other good points count for nothing if the 
flower is deformed or off color. Every part must be perfect. 
Keep everything true to grade and see that the count is always 



150 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

correct, and you will build up a reputation for right dealing 
which will be worth much in getting and holding the best 
trade. There is always a market for the right goods. It is 
true that at times prices are low, but it :s also true that a good 
salesman can nearly always find an outlet for good stock. 
Prices for the shorter grades are as good sometimes in August 
as they are at Christmas, because of the fact that everybody is 
growing immense quantities of all kinds of flowers for the 
Christmas trade and the market is glutted if anything happens 
to unbalance things, such as bad weather, hard times, etc., 
while, on the other hand, there is always a shortage in August, 
which is between seasons in a measure. The June glut is 
past. Some growers, disgusted with their returns, have 
ceased shipping and are drying off their stock, while the man 
with a few good Roses can make a few dollars very easily. 

Marketing 

The flowers should be laid out carefully and evenly, on 
stout wax paper, which may be bought ready cut into con- 
venient sizes (15 in. by 20 in. is a good size for ordinary 
grades). For longer stems, a double sheet of newspaper may 
be laid underneath the wax paper. A little chopped ice should 
be sprinkled on the foliage of every bunch if the weather is 
warm or they have to travel far. The finer the ice is chopped 
up the better will be the results obtained. Keep the flowers 
dry and cover with tissue paper. Lay on the papers and 
place in the boxes in such a manner that the heads cannot 
get broken, and always lay the white flowers on the top 
(or as much as possible) as they are the most likely to get 
bruised and discolored. But always remember if the 
white flowers are on top not to pack the box so full 
that the flowers are crushed down with the cover, or the 
opposite effect is obtained. Line the boxes carefully with 



NOTES ON CUTTING 



151 



clean paper and use boxes of a uniform size and not over 
eight inches deep. 

By visiting the markets and making a few notes of the way 
Roses are shipped in you will soon see how the packing should 
be done, and you will find that the growers who ship in the 
best manner invariably get the most satisfactory results. It 
pays in the Spring months to double the number of shipments 
to insure fresh goods. It is also found advantageous, when 




Commercial Rose Packing 

A box of Roses as packed by Robert Simpson, of Clifton, N. J., ready 

for shipment to the wholesaler 



grading certain kinds, to have the feet and inches marked oflf 
on the table so that you can tell at a glance how long the stems 
are; customers often want to know this point when ordering. 
To get the best prices the market must be closely watched 
and followed up every day. The men with the steady sup- 
ply are the ones who will be looked to for the goods, and these 
men can sell Roses at all times. 



152 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 



RECORD OF DAILY CUT 

, (Tack this on a board and hang up in the Greenhouse) 
Month House No — 



East or West 



1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

29 

30 

31 

Total 



sfa'ty I Killarney 

75 

56 

110 

84 
97 
69 



120 

75 

686 



Hadley 



Mrs.Chas. 
Russell 



Columbia 



Other 
Varieties 



TOTAL 



SALES SHEET FOR OFFICE 



Month . 



Year- 



The first column under each grade indicates the quantity sold, 
second column, which may be in red ink, shows the price 
obtained each day 



The 



OPHELIA 



SPECIAL 



FANCY 



EXTRA 



No. 1 



No. 2 



Price 



Price 



Price 



Price 



Price 



25 

25 

25 
25 



25 
50 
50 
50 

25 
50 



50 
75 
75 
50 
75 
75 



100 

75 

75 

125 

100 

50 



150 
125 
125 
150 
100 
150 



25 
125 



50 
I 300 



50 
450 



100 
625 



125 
925 



153 



154 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Preparation for Exhibition 

Roses intended for the exhibition table are often taken 
from the ordinary cut intended for market, but, if especially 
large and fine flowers are desired, a little extra care should be 
given. Extra good shoots should be picked out and marked 
by tying a piece of string or raffia on them. They should then 
receive special attention as regards food and water, and should 
be cut so that they will be in the best condition possible when 
they are exhibited. If they are rather late in flowering they 
may be hurried along with extra heat, but they are never 
so good in this case as they are likely to be soft and so wilt. 
It is preferable to have them a few days early. They may 
be cut one week ahead when in the bud and placed away in 
a cold room in clean water. If you have no ice chest it is 
advisable to set the jars in a bank of snow or on ice in your 
flower room if it is at all warm. This will retard them. They 
will require careful watching every day as they must be de- 
veloped enough to make a good show and at the same time 
not be past their best. A few undeveloped or old flowers will 
spoil the entire bunch. 

When staged the general effect should be good. This 
is most important of all, and if, on close inspection, it is found 
that the quality is there and the details are correct, the exhibit 
will be very like'y to favorably impress both judges and pub- 
lic. 



CHAPTER XXII 

GENERAL REMARKS 

Examine New Stock Carefully 

WHEN new stock is being bought it should always be 
examined on arrival and quarantined if any sign of 
disease is found on it. Complaint should be made at once, 
if any is in order; it is useless to wait several weeks or months 
before doing this 

Hybrids for Forcing in Pots or Boxes 

Roses to be flowered in pots will give better results if they 
are carefully grown in them the previous Summer so as to 
become established; they should then be dried off. The 
earlier they are rested the sooner they can be forced. The 
main point to -be obtained is strong wood, well ripened the 
previous Summer. 

Prune as advised in a previous chapter. 

Tie the Rambler type into the shape required as soon as 
possible after they are brought in for forcing. 

It will take twelve or fourteen weeks in Midwinter to 
bring these varieties into flower from the time they are brought 
into heat. Start cool at first, spray to induce a good break, 
and feed liberally as they advance. 

When Easter comes rather late, Crimson Ramblers may be 
forced in ten weeks. 

Allow a temperature of about 45° at night at first, raising 
this by degrees to 58° later, after the buds have started and 

155 



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156 



GENERAL REMARKS 157 

the flower buds show. A little extra warmth may be allowed 
at night after this, if necessary, as it is not so injurious in the 
Spring months, but undue forcing is not recommended at any 
time for Roses; 60° at night, and 75° at noon on sunny days 
in Winter, is as warm as Roses should be kept, excepting 
special kinds. During spells of cold, dark weather, the 
temperature may be reduced from four to eight degrees in 
the daytime and from two to four degrees at night. 

Hybrid Teas may be lifted from benches and stored over 
Winter in a frame out of the reach of standing water. Set 
close together, sift fine loam over the roots, and protect from 
frost. Give air at intervals and look out for mice among the 
coverings. This stock may be replanted inside or planted out- 
doors early in the Spring where it will give good results. 

Roses in pots may be wintered in the same way. Bring in 
as required for forcing. Give thorough soakings of water to 
wet the bal through to the bottom when pot Roses are 
brought inside for forcing. 

Eel Worms do not Hurt Manetti Stock 

Root galls or eel worms were responsible in a great measure 
for the introduction of the now common method of growing 
Roses on Manetti. They do not seem to hurt this stock, when 
present, as it grows so rapidly. They are seldom seen on 
Manetti roots. Soil sterilization is the best remedy for eel 
worms; some use limewater, others use loam from land that 
is under water during a part of the year, for this pest seems 
more prevalent in dry soils, and does more damage to plants 
growing on benches than to ones growing in solid beds. 

American-grown Manetti stock has been tried for grafting 
purposes but, uptodate, does not compete successfully with 
the imported product. The wood is too dry and wiry when 
grown in this climate. 



158 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

American Hybridizers Have Done Great Work 

As before stated, the raising of seedling Roses is expensive 
and cannot be undertaken by the average grower. We have 
worthy men who are doing good work for which they deserve 
much credit. The American grower looks to such men as 
John Cook, Dr. Van Fleet, E. G.Hill, M. H.Walsh, Alexander 
Montgomery and others, for a race of plants which will fill 
all the requirements of our exacting methods of cultivation 
and marketing. 

The Art of Watering 

One of the arts of growing good Roses lies in knowing 
when and in what quantities to apply water. In Winter 
time, from about November i to February i, it is best to 
water rather light and carefully, allowing the beds to become 
a little on the dry side before giving more water. Water 
most freely when a new growth is being made, then reduce 
the quantity when the crop is almost off. At certain times 
in Spring and Summer it is almost impossible to give too 
much water. Soak the beds thoroughly when starting up 
new after drying off in the Summer time. By drying off I 
mean reducing the water supply, not the old-fashioned way 
of drying the beds so that they crack open. It will do no 
harm to repeat: do not dry too much. One month is long 
enough to dry off in the Summer time. 

If the loam is sour, heavy waterings will sometimes help to 
sweeten it. If the loam becomes filled with an accumulation 
of poisonous salts from excessive feeding with fertilizers, it has 
been recommended to water very heavily, allowing the water to 
run copiously through the bottom of the bench. This may be 
kept up for several hours. 

Never attempt to grow Roses on a bench without proper 
drainage. If the water will not pass through easily, rebuild 
the bottom. 



GENERAL REMARKS 159 

Never water heavily at the commencement of a spell of 
dark, cold, weather in Winter. Generally speaking, any 
water fit for drinking or washing purposes is good for growing 
Roses; the nearer it approaches to rain water the better it is. 

Water for agricultural purposes is valuable according to its 
solvent properties. That is, the more able it is to convert the 
latent fertility of the soil, or manure applied, into available 
food for the plant, the more we esteem it. The air being full 
of carbonic acid, which impregnates the rain water as it falls, 
causes the softness. This is more marked in severe weather as 
the carbonic acid is more soluble in cold rain and snow. When 
passing through the soil, the water performs its work; and then 
some portion of it finds its way down through iron, chalk, lime- 
stone, or whatever is underground, and the water becomes 
contaminated, and often contains inorganic salts in solution. 

Salts of lime often exists in large quantities where chalk 
' and limestone are found. This water, which is the kind 
often obtained from wells and which curdles soap when wash- 
ing, is not so good for plants, and is bad for the boilers and the 
heating plant, as it encrusts them, owing to the precipitation 
of the carbonate of lime in the boiling process. 

Advantage of Fall Collection of Loam 

Many good growers collect their loam in the Fall and 
stack it together for the following reasons: much time is 
saved in the Spring and it is sometimes impossible to get on to 
certain fields until the ground dries late in the season. Other 
growers claim that they never have any grubs in the very dry 
loam collected in the Fall. 

Where grafted Roses become partly separated from the 
stock they will look half dead for a time, but often make roots 
of their own, if left alone, when they will pick up again and 
grow well. A little loam or old manure banked up around the 



160 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




GENERAL REMARKS 



161 



bottom will induce them to make roots where they are being 
separated from the stock. 

Try a Few Plants in Shallow Loam on Benches 

The time-honored custom is to repot young Roses into 
larger pots as required, but several large growers have adopted 




Rose Hadley 

Deep velvety crimson, retaining its brilliancy at all seasons 

of the year 



the custom of taking them out of the small pots and planting 
them five or six inches apart on shallow benches, where they 
remain until they are placed in their permanent quarters. 
They make fine plants in this way and will lift without being 
damaged if kept a little on the dry side. One grower claims to 



162 ■ COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

have planted six weeks later this year than he did last and to 
have cut flowers six weeks earlier, and that only nine weeks 
elapsed between the time of planting and cutting the first 
crop. 

Roses That Pay, and Why 

Where it can be successfully grown there is no doubt that 
American Beauty pays as well or better than any other Rose. 
The first year looo plants of a new thing may pay $2.00 per 
plant. Two years later 5000 or 10,000 plants of this variety 
may not pay more than half as much per plant per year. 
My Maryland Rose has been credited with earning ^1.50 per 
plant per year by one large grower. Another variety has 
earned ^2.00 per plant in a year. Hadley has earned between 
^5.00 and $6.00 per plant in one establishment within the 
last two years. 

The first man in the field gets the best results. 

What Number of Roses Can a Man Take Care Of ? 

On large places a section man will take care of from 4000 
to 6000 plants. This depends on conditions. Cheap help is 
given to clean the houses, etc., on some places. These men 
have their regular work caring for the plants and cutting the 
flowers, and often do not see the flowers after they leave the 
houses, the grading and shipping being done by separate men. 
The firing, also, is done by regular firemen, one or more 
through the daytime and the same for the night work, in 
addition to watchmen who go regularly through the houses 
and attend to the temperature. 

A Poor Man Cannot Take Chances 

After a man becomes established and is in a position to 
experiment a little it is well to try a few of the new varieties. 



GENERAL REMARKS 163 

Take all the new kinds and try a few of each. If you find a 
good one, grow one or two thousand of it the next year, but 
never go into an uncertain thing too heavily. You must have 
enough of the sure things on the place to make good any loss 
you may sustain from the others. On large places an order for 
10,000 plants of a new kind is not uncommon. 

A man must be willing to take some risk if he is anxious 
to make money, or to try new kinds. The novelties are 
always sought by the buyers and often help to sell the common 
stock. 

In choosing a good Rose for Winter flowering you will 
find that varieties with a rather long, pointed bud, will de- 
velop best in the dark days. Buds hard and short, like a 
flat cabbage head, are best in the Summer time. Take two 
good buds about ready to open and feel the diff"erence; the 
former kind, having perhaps thirty petals, will feel soft and 
yielding to the touch while the latter, with forty-five petals, 
will be very hard and slow to open. 

Always be Prepared for Bad Weather 

The need of fire heat in the Fall depends somewhat on 
circumstances. If the plants are not soft, and if the houses 
are not over-charged with moisture, no harm will result from 
one or two cool nights without fire in August. On the other 
hand, the seeds of disease are often sown at this time and the 
good grower is always prepared to turn on steam at short 
notice. If the plants are kept too cool in the Fall the wood 
becomes hard and the plants will take a rest from which it 
will be hard to get them started again. Aim to keep the 
plants moving in the Fall without getting them too soft. It is 
sometimes advisable to rest varieties in the Winter time for 
certain reasons. Then the temperature may be reduced and 
also the water supply. As a rule, the higher the temperature 



164 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

carried the more water the plants will require. In some of 
our Rose factories where flowers are turned our daily by the 
10,600, water is applied more or less heavily at the roots three 
times weekly during the growing season. 

The crops may be easily regulated by pinching off the 
buds. Commence on the back bed and pinch back, take the 
next one the following week and so on every week or ten days 
as required. 

Stock Must be Carefully Sold 

Always aim to have the best Roses grown in your market 
and you will be sure of customers all the time. 

A fair average cut for a year with 20,000 plants in mixed 
kinds would be 40 flowers per plant, and a fair price would be 
four cents per flower averaged throughout the year. The 
cost of selling ranges from 7 per cent to 20 per cent of the sales, 
according to how it is done. Next to growing well and at 
the lowest cost, the selling of the stock is of the greatest im- 
portance and should not be left to an incompetent or un- 
reliable party. 

While it is impossible to give any last word regarding 
modern methods of commercial Rose growing it may be stated 
that the fundamental principles of this art never change. The 
grower who can take advantage of his knowledge of these, and 
apply his wisdom so that everything works together to the end 
of producing the largest number of good flowers for the lowest 
cost, will be the most successful. 



CHAPTER XXIII 

GREENHOUSE CONSTRUCTION FOR 
ROSE GROWING 

NO. I. — These houses are of Hitchings & Company's 
special design and construction. They are 6i feet 
wide, 498 feet 5 inches long, and are arranged in a block 
of five houses with the boiler pit and service building in 
the center of the most southerly house. 

The houses are of the most modern type of commercial 
construction. The rafters are of flat iron reinforced with 
angles. The main part of the roof is of angle iron truss 
construction, supported on extra heavy pipe columns. 

The rafters are bent at the eave line, so that no splice 
plates are needed, and rest on heavy cast iron foot pieces 
which are embedded in concrete. They are spaced 12 feet, 
1 3^ inches apart and are connected with angle iron purlins 
which support the roof bars. The eaves are of angle iron, 
part of which is exposed to the inside of the house, which 
prevents, to a large degree, the formation of icicles at 
this point. 

A special feature of the construction is that every part 
is designed so that the condensation will run without 
drip to the sill, which is of cast iron and arranged so that it 
overhangs the solid. wall below the sill. These walls are of 
concrete, supported on piers about 6 feet apart. The wall 
extends about 8 inches below the surface of the ground. The 
piers are 3 feet below the ground and deeper where it is 
necessary to obtain a solid footing. 

165 



166 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




GREENHOUSE CONSTRUCTION FOR ROSE GROWING 167 

There are two lines of ventilation sash on the roof, one 
on each side of the ridge, operated in lengths of approxi- 
mately 60 feet. There is one line below the eave on the south 
side also operated in lengths of 60 feet. Many growers 
prefer a short line as it gives them more control of the tem- 
perature than where ventilators are arranged in lines of 
greater length. The operating wheel for the roof sash for 
both sides, is brought to one walk and is lifted with a tell- 
tale arrangement which shows exactly how much the ven- 
tilators are open. Another special feature of these houses 
is the great care used to withstand the very high winds 
which occasionally occur in this section. This elaborate 
bracing has been found to be absolutely necessary and, in 
this case, effectual. 

The houses are glazed with 1 8-inch x 20-inch glass, being 
placed the 20-inch way between bars. The glass is of 
an American manufacture which is most excellent for green- 
house purposes. 

The benches are constructed of pecky Cypress and 
are 4 feet wide, the walks being 22 inches wide. 

The heating is low pressure steam, the radiation being of 
iM-inch pipe. The mains run in a trench in the center of 
the house and are protected with covering. The boiler 
house is situated on the south side of the range in the center 
of the house, on lower ground, so that the roof does not 
shade the first house. There are three boilers of 200 h.p. 
each. The circulation is of gravity, there being no mechani- 
cal means required. This is an excellent feature as it does 
away with the necessity of a man especially skilled along 
mechanical lines. 

The chimney is 1 25 feet high, which insures the consump- 
tion of a low grade of fuel. The houses are piped to maintain 
a temperature of 55 to 60 degrees in zero weather. 

The description of No. i also pertains to the L. B. Cod- 



168 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




GREENHOUSE CONSTRUCTION FOR ROSE GROWING 169 




170 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




GREENHOUSE CONSTRUCTION FOR ROSE GROWING 171 

dington range (Nos. 2 and 3) with the exception of the side 
sill which is of cypress instead of cast iron as on the Duck- 
ham-Pierson range. 

No. 4. — Houses are of sectional iron frame construction 
with rafters placed 1 1 feet, i inch on centers. 

The eave lines on both houses are 7 feet high. Continu- 
ous ventilating sash are placed on each side of the ridge on 
each house, also on each of the vertical sides. The roof 
sash are hinged to the ridge, while the side sash are hinged 
to the galvanized angle iron eave plate. 

Stationary sash extend from the top of the 5-inch-cast 
iron sill which caps the 4-inch concrete wall up to a gal- 
vanized iron transom. 

All the houses are heated with steam. 




Rosa Stylosa 



172 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




CHAPTER XXIV 

STEAM HEATING AND ENGINEERING 

AS fuel and steam heating play such an important part in 
Rose growing it has been thought advisable to include 
a chapter on this subject in this book. It will be my aim to 
present this in such a simple form that it may be understood 
by the beginner, for I realize that experts have no need of 
this knowledge. 

The three elements of Nature which we must understand 
in steam engineering are air, water and fuel. 

Air, Water and Fuel — i. Air 

Air is composed principally of the three gases, nitrogen, 
oxygen and carbonic acid gas, in the following proportions: 
nitrogen, four parts, oxygen, one part, with a slight admixture 
of carbonic acid gas. 

The most important of these is oxygen, for, without it, 
we could not live, neither could combustion be maintained. 

The atmosphere has a pressure or weight of 14.7 (i4yV) 
lbs. per square inch at the sea level. The higher we ascend in 
the air the less the pressure becomes. The displacement of 
the air causes the water to rise in a pump or siphon. When 
filling a boiler with water the air cocks or valves should be 
opened at the highest point to allow the air to escape. 

A vacuum is a space from which all the air has been re- 
moved and this system of heating is in use at some establish- 
ments. Air that is confined (called dead air) is a good non- 
conductor of heat or cold, while air in circulation will heat or 
cool a room.. 

173 



174 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

2, Water 

■ Water is composed of oxygen and hydrogen; it is com- 
pressible and elastic, but the change is very minute and has 
no practical consequence. A column of fresh water 27.71 
(iJj^q) inches high, at a temperature of 62° Fahr., would 
exert a pressure, at the bottom, of one pound, while at the 
same temperature a column of fresh water 33.947 (33tWd") 
feet high, would have a pressure of one atmosphere=i4.7 
lbs., per square inch at the base. Water is 8 1 5 times heavier 
than air at the sea level with a mean temperature, 56° Fahr. 
Fresh water will boil in a vacuum at a temperature of 72° 
Fahr.; in the open air at sea level at 212° Fahr.; and under 
a pressure of 15 lb. per square inch at a temperature of 234° 
Fahr. 

Water is the heaviest, or at its greatest density, at about 
39° Fahr.; at this point it will expand with either heat or cold. 
From this fact it is evident that there is a point on either 
side of this temperature where the water has the same weight, 
and this point is reached when the water is at 32° and 47° 
Fahr. 

Water will expand in rising from 60° Fahr. to 212° (its 
boiling point) 234 per cent in volume. On account of its 
solvent power water is never obtained pure except when 
freshly distilled. It dissolves minerals, vegetables and 
gases. It holds foreign matter in suspension and in solution. 
The particles held in suspension can be filtered out. The 
matter held in solution can only be separated by evaporation. 
Salt in water raises the temperature of the boiling and lowers 
that of the freezing point. 

3, Fuel 

The third point to be considered is fuel. Artificial heat is 
in the most common form derived through the combining of 



STEAM HEATING AND ENGINEERING 175 

the two gases, oxygen and hydrogen, with carbon, which is 
a solid. The two elementary bodies which give the heating 
power to all fuels are carbon and hydrogen. It is said that 
one pound of carbon will heat 14.220 lbs. of water 1° Fahr., 
while one pound of hydrogen will heat 52.155 lbs. of water 1° 
Fahr. A unit of heat is an amount of heat required to raise 
one pound of water 1° Fahr. 

Pure coal cannot be had in practice; it always contains 
more or less ash and slate which will not burn; hence, one 
pound of commercial coal never generates the amount of 
heat above mentioned. 

Combustion is the term applied to the process of burning, 
due to the oxygen of the air passing into a state of chemical 
union with the carbon and hydrogen of the fuel. This corn- 
bination always generates heat. One hundred and fifty-six 
cubic feet of air must pass through the grate for every pound 
of coal consumed; about one-fifth part of this air is oxygen. 

Some grates are cast with insufficient air space. It is said 
that one-third of the grate should consist of air space. Some 
firemen wet their coal for the reason that heat resolves the 
moisture into steam, and finally into carbonic oxide and hy- 
drogen. If the draught supplied to the fire is sufficient, both 
these gases will burn. 

One ton of average coal is equal to two cords of average 
wood for steaming purposes. Coal is divided into two 
primary divisions: anthracite, or hard coal, which does not 
flame when kindled, and bituminous, or soft coal, which 
does. The reason is the soft coal contains so much more 
hydrogen and ignites at so low a temperature that it flames 
the instant it touches a hot fire. Anthracite coal sometimes 
contains as high as 94 per cent of carbon. As this element 
decreases in amount it graduates into a bituminous coal. 
The term anthracite is applied to coal containing 80 per cent 
or over of carbon. The maximum consumption of coal for 



176 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

steam boilers is, with natural draught, 12 lbs. per hour for 
each square foot of grate surface. 

The value of any fuel is measured by the number of heat 
units which its combustion will generate. The two sources of 
waste in fuel burned under steam boilers are, first, the gases 
going to waste up the chimney; in some cases this averages 30 
per cent, while, under the best conditions, it is 12 per cent. 
It is very important to always keep tubes and flues thorougjhly 
clean as the heat is then absorbed by the boiler instead of 
going up the chimney to waste. The other source of waste is 
in systems where cold water has to be often fed to the boilers; 
where the water can be returned to the boilers hot without 
loss, a great saving in coal is effected. 

Large greenhouses are generally heated by low pressure 
steam which means a pressure of less than 15 lbs. per square 
inch. This is the most economical form, as the relative 
volume of steam decreases faster than the temperature in- 
creases as the pressure rises. 

When the boiler can be placed in a cellar deep enough so 
that the water line of boiler is two or three feet below the 
lowest point of the heating coils, the water from condensation 
can be returned to the boiler without the use of pump or 
steam trap. This is the most simple arrangement, but in 
many cases it is almost impossible and not advisable to 
excavate such a deep cellar and the boilers are set on the 
same level as the greenhouse floor. 'With this arrangement 
it is necessary to use a pump or steam trap to return the water 
from condensation to the boiler. This is accomplished by 
placing a steam pressure reducing valve on the steam main 
near the boiler so that sufficient pressure can be carried on 
the boiler to operate the pump or steam trap and at the same 
time reduce the pressure in the heating mains to three, five, 
or whatever pressure is desired. Quite a number of large 
greenhouses are now heated by the vacuum system of steam 



STEAM HEATING AND ENGINEERING 177 

heating. This is accomplished by using a vacuum pump 
which is connected to the return mains in the boiler room. 
The condensed water from the system is discharged by the 
vacuum pump into an open receiver; and from the receiver 
it is pumped into the boiler by a boiler feed pump. With this 
system it is necessary to use on the return end of each coil a 
so-called "Thermo Valve," which allows the escape of air or 
water and prevents the escape of steam; otherwise any coil 
without one would permit steam to pass into the returns 
and destroy the vacuum which it is the duty of the pump 
to maintain. 

Care of the Boiler 

Horizontal return tubular boilers are commonly used for 
steam heating; these, when properly set in brick, will last for 
years and give good results. The furnace is the space above 
the grate where the fire lies. The fire sheet is the sheet or 
part of the boiler directly over the fire. The ash pit is the 
space below the grate and it is important to keep this cleaned 
out every day or the accumulation of ashes will obstruct the 
passage of air through the grate and also cause the burning 
out of the grate. The bridge wall is the wall at the back end 
of the grate, in the style of boiler we are considering. This 
wall is to keep the coal from falling off" the back part of the 
grate and to force the flame up to the bottom of the boiler; 
also, when the doors are opened to put on fresh fuel, it re- 
duces the amount of cold air that will be drawn in under the 
boiler back through the tubes and up the chimney. 

The combustion chamber is the space back of the bridge 
wall. All boilers should be provided with a blow-off" pipe at 
the bottom, which should be opened once or twice a week to 
clean out any sediment which may accumulate. The safety 
or fusible plug is placed at the low water line in a boiler; this 



178 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 



;''^ ~'si 


i*.. 1?' 












B^^: -J ^. Jm^»^ 


IBh^^^^H^Blj 




''^SUBIImII 

- .'lllJHfir4» .rA 








^4 
=3' 



Martinet 



STEAM HEATING AND ENGINEERING 179 

is a few inches above the top of the tubes; if the water gets 
below this the plug will melt and, through the escaping water 
or steam behind the boiler, an alarm would be given to the 
fireman. The manhole at the top of the boiler is for the pur- 
pose of entering to examine and clean, inspect or repair it. 
The hand holes are the small openings for cleaning and 
inspecting the boilers. These should be opened every season 
and the bottom of the boiler inspected and swabbed out with 
a cloth or brush on a pole and washed out with a nozzle on the 
end of the hose. The heating surface of a boiler is the portion 
exposed to the fire which must, of course, always be covered 
with water. If any dirt accumulates on the bottom of a 
boiler the water is kept away and the fire will burn this part, 
causing a sag or uneven place in the plate; this, in turn, makes 
a hollow place for the dirt to lodge and has to be watched 
very carefully or the boiler will soon be ruined. 

The Grate 

From four to five feet in length of grate bars gives the best 
results with this type of boiler, and shaking grates are much 
better than stationary ones, from the fact that they break up 
the fire and do not allow of clinkers being produced and, 
most important, being operated without opening the fire 
doors to admit so much cold air, they do not cause such a 
cooling off of the boiler plates. The fire is also kept more 
level on the grate, as it should be. On some of our largest 
places the stationary grates are being torn out and shaking 
grates installed in their place; the saving in fuel in one or 
two seasons is said to off^set the outlay. 

The horse power of a boiler is approximately three times 
the square feet of grate surface with natural draught. But 
the horse power is not fixed; the harder you fire it the more 
steam it will generate. The space left over the bridge wall 



180 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

under a return tubular boiler should be eighteen square 
inches of space per horse power of the boiler. The area of 
the chimney should be about one-eighth the area of the grate. 
In starting a fire under a boiler where everything is cold a 
small fire should be carried for awhile so that everything may 
be warmed slowly or there is danger of unequal expansion and 
injury to the boiler. Also, in a brick set boiler, if for any 
cause it is shut down and the water is to be blown off, do not 
attempt this until several hours after the fire is out and the 
brickwork has had time to cool off somewhat. 

The Safety Valve and Water Glass 

The most important fixture on a steam boiler is the safety 
valve; if this is of sufficient size and in good working order 
there is no possibility of getting an over pressure of steam. 
The safety valve should be tried at frequent intervals by 
gently raising with the hand on heating boilers and, on 
pressure boilers, the steam should be run up to the blowing 
off point when, if it does not start, it will have to be gently 
started by hand. There is generally about three pounds dif- 
ference between the opening and closing of a safety valve 
from the fact that there is a greater surface exposed to the 
steam when it is open. A pop or spring safety valve, which 
is locked so that no one can tamper with it, is the safest to 
use. 

In case a safety valve gets stuck, and the steam is found 
too high, or in any case where we suddenly want to do away 
with the heat under a boiler, close the dampers and cover the 
fire with ashes or fine coal; this will cool it off more quickly 
than the old way of drawing the fire. Afterward, if necessary, 
the fire can be drawn. In case the safety valve is stuck do 
not attempt to release it until the pressure is down to normal, 
then gently raise it with the hand. If raised when the press- 



STEAM HEATING AND ENGINEERING 



181 



ure is too high steam would be rapidly disengaged from the 
water and the strain on the boiler wil be greater than if it 
was left alone. 

The water glass and gauge cocks are for the purpose of 
showing the height of water in the boiler and should be blown 
out every day. Close both the upper and the lower valve in 
turn, and b'ow the water or steam out through the cock at the^ 
bottom of the glass; also blow out the three try cocks in the 
water column. If a water glass breaks close the valve at the 
bottom of the glass first and then close the upper one; there is 
not so much danger of getting burned in this way. 



ALLOWABLE SIZES OF SAFETY VALVES FOR STEAM 

HEATING BOILERS 

(Maximum Allowable Working Pressure, 15 lbs. per sq. in.) 



Water Evaporated per sq. ft. 
Grate Surface per Hr., Lb. 



Diameter of 


Area of Valve 


Valve In. 


Sq. In. 


1 


0.7854 


IH 


1.2272 


IK 


1.7671 


2 


3.1416 


2K 


4.9087 


3 


7.0686 


SVz 


9.6211 


4 


12.5660 


43^ 


15.9040 



50 



75 



100 



Area of Grate, Sq. Ft. 



125 



2.25 


1.50 


1.00 


1.00 


3.50 


2.25 


1.75 


1.50 


5.00 


3.25 


2.50 


2.00 


8.75 


6.00 


4.25 


3.50 


13.75 


9.25 


7.00 


5.50 


20.00 


13.25 


10.00 


8.00 


27.25 


18.00 


13.50 


10.75 


35.50 


23.50 


17.75 


14.25 


44.75 


30.00 


22.50 


18.00 



Boiler Troubles 

Foaming in a boiler is shown by the jumping up and down 
of the water in the glass and is caused by dirty water and by 
forcing a boiler beyond its capacity. It can be remedied by 
cleaning out the boiler as soon as possible. Care should be 
taken that water does not leak down on to the outside of a 
boiler; if this happens corrosion will take place in a short time. 



182 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




Rose Mrs. Aaron Ward 
Possesses handsome foliage, produces enormous crops. 

extra warmth in Winter 
Photo courtesy E. G. Hill Co., Richmond, Ind. 



Likes a little 



STEAM HEATING AND ENGINEERING 183 

Boiler tubes should be scraped out occasionally as a thin 
carbonaceous scale is liable to form which results in a great 
waste of fuel. This scraping is in addition to the brush or to 
the blowing out with a jet of steam. It is estimated that 15 
per cent more fuel is used in a dirty boiler than in a clean 
one to obtain the same amount of heat. 

The Chimney 

To get the best results from a chimney every bit of air that 
enters it should pass through the grates. Round chimneys 
are better than square ones for the gases ascend in a spiral 
motion. In their construction brick is better than iron, for 
the current does not get cooled off so much in its ascent. 

Feeding the Boiler 

Be careful when feeding cold water into a boiler to do so 
very slowly as the cold water is heavier than hot and settles 
to the bottom of the boiler. In theory this is bad for the 
plates, but in practice it is perhaps impossible to cool off a 
boiler with a fire underneath it. The water should always be 
carried at a uniform height in a boiler and there should never 
be less than three inches of water above the top of the upper 
row of tubes. If a tube should split, or becomes pitted so 
that it leaks, a dry Pine plug may be driven into either end, 
when it may be run for a day or two until a new tube can be 
put in. 

Wetting down ashes and clinkers close to the boiler front 
will cause corrosion of the boiler metal and do harm. Coal 
which contains much sulphur will form an acid and corrode 
the plates. Any cracks in the brick setting of a boiler should 
be pointed up as they admit air, chilling the boiler and cooling 
off the gases. 



184 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

To prevent the gaskets from sticking to the hand and man- 
hole plates coat them on both sides with graphite or plumbago 
and oil. A good putty for joints is made by mixing white 
lead ground in oil with dry red lead into which a little asbestos 
may be worked if it is to be used near the fire. 

The Art of Firing 

When firing, feed with coal little and often; keep a level 
fire about six inches thick; a fire too heavy is wasteful, for the 
air is not so well able to get through the grate. Avoid holes 
in the fire and keep it clean so that it looks bright the whole 
distance in the ash pit with the heaviest fire toward the back. 

If too hot a fire is carried at the front there is the liability 
of burning the furnace doors and, also, if the brickwork over 
the arches is not in good repair there is the danger of burning 
out the dry sheet which is the sheet outside the part contain- 
ing the water. Some types of boilers do not have this over- 
hanging dry sheet. 

Burn the fires down as low as possible in the morning; 
clean them and push the fire back up to the bridge wall, then 
bank it with fine coal and keep all the doors shut. If any gas 
is noticed the damper in the chimney may be opened slightly. 
Some firemen leave the furnace doors open all day; this wastes 
the heat and does harm to the boiler plates by admitting so 
much cold air, causing it to take a much longer time to get up 
steam in the afternoon. When steam is required, open the 
draught, after a few minutes, when the fire is burned enough, 
spread it evenly over the grate and cover lightly all over with 
fresh coal. In this way steam may be gotten up in from ten 
to twenty minutes after starting the fire. 



CHAPTER XXV 

HOT WATER HEATING 

THE improvements in this method of heating have been 
so great during the past few years that this system 
is worthy of careful consideration. The advantages of hot 
water over steam heating are stated by those who favor this 
method to be as follows: Economical operation, even heat, 
perfect control, absolute safety, and that it can be operated 
with low fires and will maintain an even and steady tempera- 
ture with less attention than steam. 

Hot water is now being used extensively as a medium of 
heating greenhouses for all kinds of crops, and, of late years, 
many large Rose establishments are being heated in this 
manner. When used for Rose growing, it should be arranged 
in small units of radiation, and at this time it is the practice to 
control each and every circulation by independent gate valves. 
With gravity circulation you can heat coils up to 250 feet 
in length; with forced circulation there is no limit to the 
length of houses or size of the plant to be heated by hot water. 

Any size of pipe may be used, but the ideal piping sys- 
tems of today are 2-in. and 4-in., and large flows, with 2-in. 
returns. 

With hot water heating you require an open expansion 
tank for a gravity system, and for a system to work under 
pressure, a good sized closed tank, elevated several feet higher 
than the highest point of the system, and so located as to 
make direct connection with the main return near the boiler. 

It is not within my province to recommend any particular 
make of generator, circulator, or pump, but I would advise, 
as a means of saving money in the end, that you consult a re- 

185 



186 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

liable firm of greenhouse heating engineers and get them to 
figure on your requirements. 

The returns should have a steady pitch back to the boiler 
of about lo in. in loo feet, and there should be no low places 
or pockets in the system. Vents should also be placed at the 
highest points in a pressure system to allow the air to escape. 
Water in a common gravity or open circuit system cannot be 
heated above 212° Fahr., while water at 15 lbs. pressure will 
be 234° Fahr. 

I have personally had little experience with hot water 
heating, but the modern system is so well liked and so highly 
recommended by parties who are using it, that it is well worth 
considering. The best type of boiler for this purpose is the 
saddle back, as this type holds a very small volume of water, 
and it has an immense amount of direct heating surface, 
therefore heats up very quickly, and it is claimed that it 
operates more economically than any other type of boiler 
construction known. There is really no comparison between 
the old-fashioned gravity system with its clumsy 4-in. pipes 
and leaky joints, and the modern pressure system with small 
threaded pipes and rapid, forced circulation. It would cer- 
tainly be wise for the smaller places, where no regular night 
fireman is employed, to consider this^method of heating. 



HOT WATER HEATING 



187 




Climbing Tausendschoen 



188 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 




JoNKHEER J. L. Mock 

Flowers large, perfectly formed and highly perfumed; color is carmine 

on outside of petals and imperial pink on inside. 



CHAPTER XXVI 

GROWING COSTS AND RETURNS 

An important paper having to do with Roses when they 
are ready for the market was read by Otto H. Amling, secre- 
tary of the Albert F. Amling Co., of Maywood, 111., at a 
meeting of the Chicago Florists' Club, Nov. 7, 191 8, and we 
are reproducing herewith that portion of Mr. Amling's paper 
which is good for all time, even when changes in economic 
conditions bring about lower costs of production. When that 
time comes the scale of costs can be readily adjusted; like- 
wise, as new Roses come into the market their productivity 
can be taken account of. In consulting the chart it must 
always be borne in mind that same is prepared as of the close 
of the fiscal year, June 30, 191 8. 

I am convinced that a thorough knowledge of what it 
costs to produce each flower will open the eyes of many men 
in the flower business, lead them to realize more fully that 
each flower has a value, and spur them on to get better aver- 
age prices. 

Uniform Grading of Stock 

A uniform system of grading Roses by all growers to a 
certain length of stem — say 12-in. and under, 15-in., i8-in., 
24-in., 30-in., 36-in. and 48-in. — tying them in bundles of 
fifty each and allowing one extra for breakage, would ma- 
terially lessen the expense of handling the stock by the whole- 
saler, as stock frequently can be sold in these original bundles, 
thereby eliminating some of the breakage and bruises inci- 
dental to regrading. Open flowers, ready for immediate sale, 
should be kept separate. Arranging stock in bundles of a 

189 



190 



COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 



A Rose Grower's Expenses for 
Fiscal Year ended June 30, 191 8, 
in the Order of their importance. 






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GROWING COSTS AND RETURNS 191 

given length of stem would reduce the practice, common 
among some wholesalers' employees, of cutting stems unneces- 
sarily short just because they think they ought to be so. 
Often have I witnessed this, much to my disgust. It costs 
money to grow every inch of stem on a Rose and the full 
length of stem should be utilized whenever possible, and stems 
reduced in length no more than necessary. 

The Chart of Expenses 

The prices received by the grower should be based, of 
course, upon a careful estimate of the cost of production. To 
illustrate this phase of my subject, I have prepared a chart 
which shows the relative amounts of the various items of 
expense in growing Roses, under our system of culture. 

The cost of production has been arrived at by taking the 
total operating expenses for the year, including proper de- 
preciation charges and six per cent interest on the total in- 
vestment, and dividing this into the total number of square 
feet of bench space. Thereafter the cost per square foot is 
used as a basis for all other determinations. 

The cost of operation per square foot of bench space of an 

exclusive Rose growing establishment for the fiscal year 

ending June 30, 191 8, was 67.2 cents per square foot, divided 

as follows: Per sq. ft. 

bench space 

Wages 24.44 cents 

Coal. 11.32 cents 

Commission on sales 10.14 cents 

Depreciation on plant and equipment 4.73 cents 

Interest on investment 4.35 cents 

General expenses 3.88 cents 

Fertilizers 2.15 cents 

Boxes, wrapping and expressage 1.58 cents 

Water (power bills and other expenses) 1.40 cents 

Plants and seeds 1.26 cents 

Taxes (state) 1.13 cents 

Insecticides 79 cents 

Insurance 03 cents 

One Rose grower's total cost 67.20 cents 



192 COMMERCIAL ROSE CULTURE 

Recent Increases in Cost 

The cost of operation during the current year will be much 
higher than the average prevailing during the last year. 
For instance, a lot of coal was bought in the forepart of the 
year at lower figures and with lower freight rates attached 
than are obtainable now. Labor, also, is considerably higher, 
The latter, as indicated by the chart, comes first in order of 
importance, with coal ranking next. These two represent a 
grower's heaviest expense items and any increases in these are 
reflected immediately on his balance sheet. Of course, the 
advances of other items since last year also add to the grower's 
difficulties. 

Considering all advances and the extremely hazardous 
nature of the business, with little or no insurance, due to the 
almost prohibitive rates, I feel certain that the gross returns 
per season, to meet present conditions and provide a profit 
commensurate with the chances taken, should be not less 
than 96.2 cents per square foot. 

The Returns per Plant 

The cost of operating per square foot is the basic figure 
for all other determinations. Some varieties of Roses, such 
as Russell and others, are sometimes set closer, but the aver- 
age planting distance of most growers is 12x15 inches. Each 
plant thus occupies one and one-quarter square feet of 
bench space. The gross returns per plant on Roses should 
be not less than $1.20 on varieties occupying one and one- 
quarter square feet, and proportionately, according to dis- 
tance set. 

The average wholesale price for the year that must be 
obtained to reach this figure depends on the quantity of 
flowers a plant will produce on an average per season. Com- 



GROWING COSTS AND RETURNS 193 

pilation of the average production of good, average flowers 
per plant from records of the last three years shows as follows: 

Russell 17.3 flowers 

BriUiant 32.4 flowers 

White Killarney 35.1 flowers 

Milady 25.4 flowers 

Ophelia 26.5 flowers 

Sunburst 26.4 flowers 

Taking |i.2o, the lowest amount a plant should return in a 

season, and dividing it into the average yield of each variety 

for a number of years, gives us the average price that should 

prevail on each variety, namely: 

Necessary 
yearly average 

Russell 6.26 cents each 

Brilliant 3.69 cents each 

White Killarney 3.29 cents each 

Milady 4.67 cents each 

Ophelia 4.38 cents each 

Sunburst 4.52 cents each 

Necessary Variation in Prices 

The selling price would necessarily be considerably higher 
for select stock and correspondingly lower for stock grading 
lower. Also the prices during the cold season, when the 
yield is limited and the operating costs are heaviest, should 
go above the year's average because of the exceedingly low 
prices during the season of heaviest production. 



CLASSIFIED INDEX p.ge 

Air, Composition of 173 

American Beauty Rose: Culture, Propagation 114 

Planting, Syringing, Pinching 117 

Cutting Back, Fertilizers, Temperature 118 

Grafted on Manetti 118 

Aphis. 91 

Beds, Solid, Construction of 58 

Beetles 95 

Benches 58, 61 

Black Mildew 102 

Black Spot ...100 

Blue Vitriol 105 

Boilers: Where to place 18 

Care of 177 

Grate 179 

Safety Valve and Water Glass 180 

Boiler Troubles, Feeding Boiler 181, 183 

Bonemeal 108 

Budding, Propagation by 41, 42 

Building and Equipment, Cost of 146, 148 

Bunch Roses 120, 121, 123-126 

Canker 102 

Carbonate of Copper 105 

Caterpillars 95 

Chafers 96 

Choosing a Location 12- 16 

Chimney, The 183 

Climbing Roses 144, 145 

Cow Manure 14, 107, 69 

Cropping Roses 76 

Cultivation of Rose Plants 66-70, 73-75 

Cutting Roses 149 

Record of Daily Cut 152 

Disbudding 66, 76, 78, 79, 80, 81, 143, 164 

Eel Worms 157 

Exhibiting Roses, Preparation for 154 

Expense Chart 191 

Fertilizers 68, 107, 108, 110-113 

Firing, The Art of 184 

Forcing Hybrids in Pots or Boxes 155 

Forcing Ramblers 130, 131, 133 

Fuel, Composition of 174 

Fumigating 95 

Fungous Diseases 98-102 

Glass — Size, How to Lay 18 

Grading, Cost of 12 

Grading Roses 26, 149, 189 

Grafting, Propagation by 34-36, 38-40 

194 



INDEX 195 

Page 

Grafting Case, Construction of 35 

Grates 179 

Green Fly 91 

Greenhouse Construction 17, 18, 165-171 

Growing Costs and Returns 189 

Grubs 95, 96 

Heating: Hot Water and Steam 173, 185, 186 

Hellebore 104 

Hot Water Heating 185, 186 

Hybrids for Forcing in Pots or Boxes '. 155 

Hybridizing 43, 44, 47, 48, 49 

Hybrid Tea Roses 145 

Inarching Rose Seedlings 54 

Insect Pests 91, 92, 95-97 

Insecticides and Fungicides 103-106 

Kerosene Emulsion 103 

Land Suitable for Rose Houses 12 

Leaf Roller 96 

Lime 106, 111 

Loam, Fall Collection of 159 

Location, Choosing a 12- 16 

Manetti Stock: For Grafting 34 

^ For Budding. 41 

>> Rose Seedlings Inarched on 54 

**« American Beauty Rose Grafted on 118 

Manure: Cow 14, 69, 107 

Sheep 1 12 

Marketing Roses 150 

Measure for Grading Roses 26 

Mildew 98, 102 

Nitrate of Soda 112 

Outdoor Roses: Choosing Location, Soil, Fertilizer, Planting. . . 136, 139 

\ Planting Own Root and Grafted Stock 139 

Z2 Hybrid Teas, Hybrid Perpetuals, Pruning 139 

' _ Diseases 140 

' : Spraying 143 

■ Disbudding 143 

Own Root Propagation 27-33 

Packing Roses 151 

Pinching Off Buds 66, 76, 78, 79, 80, 81, 143, 164 

Piping for Hot Water Heating 185 

Plant, What to: Popular Varieites 22 

Number of Plants 25 

Plant, When to 25 

Planting, Method of 62 

Poisoning with Fertilizers and Insecticides 148 

Propagation : 

By Seedling and by Budding 41, 42 

Seedling-Inarch and Nurse-Plant Methods of 50- 56 

Propagation, Own Root: Selection of Cuttings, One, Two, and More 

Eye Cuttings, Method of Trimming 29 



196 INDEX 

Propagation, Own Root: Page 

Watering 29, 30 

Potting Rooted Cuttings 32 

Soil, Fertilizer, Size of Pots 32 

Repotting into larger pots 33 

Propagation by Grafting: 

Selection of Manetti Stock, Potting, Soil, Fertilizer 34 

Treatment and Temperature 35 

Grafting Case, Construction of 35 

Grafting, When, How and Treatment of Plants 36, 38, 39, 40 

Propagating House: Size, Situation, Ventilation 27 

Construction of Benches, Sand, Temperature 27, 29 

Pruning Rose Plants 74, 139, 140 

Rambler Roses: Best varieties 127, 129 

Propagating Rooted Cuttings 129 

Methods of Training, Feeding, Watering, Forcing 130, 131 

Forcing Baby Ramblers 131, 133, 134 

Red Spider 91 

Resting and Restarting Plants 73, 74 

Resting Roses in Winter 82, 85-90 

Repotting Roses 161 

Root Galls 157 

Rust 101 

Safety Valve 180 

Sales Sheet for Office 153 

Seed, Raising Roses from 48, 49 

Seedling, Propagation by 41, 42 

Seedlings, Inarching 50 

Sheep Manure 112 

Shipping Roses 151 

Soil 21, 57, 61 

Solid Beds, Construction of 58 

Soot 110 

Staking 67 

Steam Heating and Engineering 173-177, 179-181, 183, 184 

Sulphate of Ammonia 112 

Sulphate of Copper 105 

Sulphide of Lime 105 

Sulphur 104 

Syringing 92 

Temperature: For Hybrids for Forcing in Pots or Boxes 155 

Night Record 156 

For General Run of Roses 74, 75 

Thrips 92 

Valve, Safety 180 

Varieties, Popular, to Plant 22 

Ventilation _ 18, 69, 70 

Water, Composition of 174 

Water Glass 180 

Water Supply in Greenhouse 12 

Watering 68, 158, 159 

Wood Ashes 110 



